James Smith has been deep in the trenches of the Canadian startup scene for nearly three decades. Since 1995, he’s been working side by side with entrepreneurs, helping them navigate the ups and downs of raising venture capital and building companies from the ground up. Over the years, he’s played a key role in helping startups like Wattpad, TopHat, Ada Support, Jobber, and Shopify secure over $10 billion in venture capital and support over $14 billion in exit deals.

In mid-2022, James decided to refocus his efforts back on early-stage ventures, founding Upside Venture Law. It’s a bit like his personal passion project, geared towards four main areas: first, guiding a handpicked group of startups from their early days to Series A funding; second, offering high-net-worth founders tailored services that cover everything from personal investment strategy to managing conflicts during equity financing and M&A; third, providing investors with strategic advice on Canadian-based investments that are light on due diligence; and finally, supporting what he calls "adventurepreneurship" — giving legal support to athletes and adventurers in Canada's resort and mountain communities, whether they're at the peak of their sports careers or transitioning to business ventures.

James is always interested in hearing about new projects and figuring out how he can help. He's got a particular knack for corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and all things related to venture-backed companies and startup formation. If you’re building something cool and need someone who’s been there and done that, James is your guy.