Jim Cotter graduated University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, with honors in 2007, and then began his career in civil litigation before eventually representing employers, including large public entities, in workers’ compensation claims. He worked in that capacity for 11 years, eventually becoming a Certified Specialist in worker’s compensation and a Senior Partner in one of the largest defense firms in the state, handling the most complicated and high-exposure claims. While he learned a great deal from the technical challenges of that work, he also witnessed firsthand the workers’ compensation system failing injured workers far too often. He saw, in case after case, the denial of effective medical treatment and compensation that was on balance woefully inadequate to offset the impact of serious work injuries.
Mr. Cotter grew up in the Bay Area, raised by a mother who was a 2nd grade teacher and a father who was a government employee who worked weekends at a large corporate supermarket. The household was pro-labor and understandably concerned with the squeeze working families had been experiencing for decades. Ultimately, Mr. Cotter developed into one of those “naive” folks who first went to law school in the hopes of helping individuals in need with navigating an increasingly complicated and inequitable legal system. When the excellent attorneys at Boxer+Gerson presented him with an opportunity to finally align his work with his core values, he jumped at the chance, and he is beyond excited to now be able to advocate on behalf of injured workers with such a great team.
Mr. Cotter lives with his wonderful wife and two pretty cool children in the East Bay. When not at work he dabbles in writing of various sorts (and quality). He has been a pub-trivia host and a podcast host, acted in community theater, and coached high school wrestling at two Bay Area high schools. He is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, which he also taught in Oakland for a few years.
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The art of living is more like wrestling than dancing, in so far as it stands ready against the accidental and the unforeseen, and is not apt to fall. — Marcus Aurelius
510.835.8870