ABOUT
Before becoming an attorney, Qui James studied business because she was intrigued by how organizations are built, how they grow, and why some succeed while others struggle. Law became the natural extension of that curiosity—she recognized that behind every successful business is a legal framework shaping ownership, leverage, negotiations, and opportunity.
Today, Qui is a Florida and Georgia-barred attorney, certified sports agent, and founder of Qui James Law Collective (QJLC, PLLC), where she advises founders, executives, athletes, and growing businesses on the legal decisions that support long-term success. Her practice focuses on corporate law and intellectual property, helping clients build legal foundations that not only protect what they’ve created, but position them for the future.
After earning a degree in Business Administration from Howard University, Qui entered law school with a different perspective than many of her peers. She wasn’t simply interested in learning the law—she wanted to understand how legal structures influence the way businesses operate, scale, and create lasting value.
While attending the David A. Clarke School of Law, Qui advised nonprofit organizations, entrepreneurs, and community-based businesses on governance, organizational structure, and business formation. Working directly with organizations during critical stages of growth reinforced a lesson that continues to guide her practice today: businesses rarely struggle because of one legal problem—they struggle when foundational decisions are made without a long-term strategy.
Her understanding of how legal infrastructure supports business continued to evolve through private practice. At Cohen & Grossman, she gained experience in employment law while supporting client operations and organizational processes, strengthening her understanding of how legal counsel advances broader business objectives. At Morgan & Morgan, she observed the operational infrastructure behind one of the nation’s largest law firms, refining her ability to identify legal risk, improve systems, and understand how scalable organizations deliver legal services efficiently.
A defining chapter of her career came within the National Football League’s legal department, where she supported intellectual property and corporate law initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Working on matters involving brand protection, licensing, compliance, and commercial assets gave her firsthand exposure to how one of the world’s most recognizable organizations protects the value of its intellectual property. There, she learned that intellectual property is more than registrations and filings—it’s a business asset requiring intentional strategy, disciplined management, and long-term protection.
That foundation naturally led her into the Sports Law & Policy Clinic, where she focused on contract drafting, regulatory strategy, and the emerging legal landscape surrounding Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Before NIL became a reality, Qui researched evolving state legislation, analyzed regulatory proposals, and developed legal models anticipating how athlete branding and commercial rights would evolve. There, it became clear that the strongest legal strategies anticipate change before change becomes urgent.
In 2021, Qui co-founded ONE Sports alongside NFL Hall of Famer Edgerrin James, where she combined her legal training with firsthand experience building and advising businesses. There, she has negotiated multimillion-dollar NIL agreements, structured endorsement and ambassador partnerships, secured equity interests in emerging companies, and advised professional and collegiate athletes through high-value commercial transactions where legal strategy and business strategy intersect. That work confirmed what Qui had observed throughout her career: every transaction is ultimately a business decision, and the legal framework surrounding it can either preserve leverage or quietly diminish it.
From those experiences emerged a simple belief: businesses deserve legal counsel that understands business.
That belief became the foundation of Qui James Law Collective.
At Qui James Law Collective, legal work is never approached as a collection of isolated transactions. Every engagement is viewed through the broader context of the client’s business strategy. Whether forming a company, protecting intellectual property, negotiating commercial agreements, or advising on long-term growth, every engagement is designed to strengthen the business behind the legal issue.
Because the law is most valuable when it’s integrated into business strategy—not treated as an afterthought.
Businesses rarely succeed because of one great decision. They succeed because hundreds of legal and business decisions continue supporting one another over time.
That’s the work Qui James Law Collective was built to do.
