James Siegal provides leadership to Independent Sector and its members on general policy and program issues affecting the charitable sector, including ethics and accountability; civic engagement, both domestically and internationally; and best practices for the charitable community. Prior to joining IS in 2006, James worked as an attorney in private practice and government specializing in nonprofit law, most recently as the registration chief for the New York State Attorney General's Charities Bureau. At the Charities Bureau he was involved in the development of legislative and regulatory proposals, spoke regularly on governance and accountability in the nonprofit sector, and had responsibility for investigations into conflict of interest in nonprofit organizations.
James has been serving as a committee member for the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector's Form 990-PF Advisory Committee and has been a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York's Non-Profit Organizations Committee. He has played a leading role in collaborations among the public, nonprofit, and private sectors to implement electronic filing for nonprofit organizations nationwide and to improve information sharing among government regulators, including serving as chair of the NASCOnet Oversight Committee of the National Association of State Charity Officials. James received his bachelor's degree in history from Princeton University, summa cum laude, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude.