James Allan Gash (born 15 March 1967) is an American legal scholar and academic administrator who is the president of

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

Education

Gash received his Bachelor of Arts in finance from

Abilene Christian University Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a Private university, private Christian research university in Abilene, Texas, United States. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as an R2 (High Research Spending and Doctorate Production) institutio ...

(ACU) in 1989. While at ACU, Gash was the place kicker for the

Abilene Christian Wildcats football The Abilene Christian Wildcats football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the Abilene Christian University located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team was a member of the Southland Conference through the 2020–21 season ...

team. He graduated summa cum laude. In 2019, Gash was awarded the Jim Womack Award for professional achievement by a former ACU student-athlete. Gash graduated ''summa cum laude'' with his JD from

Pepperdine University School of Law The Pepperdine University School of Law (officially the Pepperdine University Rick J. Caruso School of Law) is the law school of Pepperdine University, a private research university in Los Angeles County, California. The school offers the Juri ...

in 1993. While in law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the

Pepperdine Law Review The ''Pepperdine Law Review'' is a student-edited law journal published by an independent student group composed of second- and third-year J.D. students at Pepperdine University School of Law. The Law Review publishes four to five issues a year and ...

and finished at the top of his graduating class.

Career

Early career

After graduating from law school, Gash served as a law clerk to the Honorable Edith H. Jones, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Gash was later a trial attorney at the firm

Kirkland & Ellis Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1909, Kirkland & Ellis has been the largest law firm in the world by revenue since 2017 and, as of 2025, is the seventh-largest by number ...

from 1995 until 1999.

Pepperdine

In 1999, Gash began teaching at the

. In 2005, he became the school's associate dean for student life, and in 2017 he became the assistant dean of strategic planning and external relations. Before being named president of Pepperdine, Gash served as the director of the Sudreau Global Justice Program at the

. On 14 February 2019, it was announced that he would become the eighth president of

, succeeding Andrew K. Benton. He was inaugurated on 25 September 2019.

Legal aid in Africa

In 2009, Gash began providing

legal aid Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and especially in

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

. Over the next decade, he worked to reduce the backlog of juvenile cases, helped institute

plea bargaining A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include ...

in the nation's justice system, and became the first American to argue a case before the Ugandan Court of Appeals. In 2012, he was named special advisor to the High Court of Uganda, and in 2018 LivingStone International University in

Mbale Mbale is a city in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Mbale District and the surrounding sub-region. Location Mbale is approximately northeast of Kampala, Uganda's capital city, on ...

named him Chancellor, a largely ceremonial position. In 2013, Gash won the Warren M. Christopher International Lawyer of the Year award, given by the California Lawyers Association.

Publications and Film

Gash is the author of several academic law review articles, with a focus on

punitive damages Punitive damages, or exemplary damages, are damages assessed in order to punish the defendant for outrageous conduct and/or to reform or deter the defendant and others from engaging in conduct similar to that which formed the basis of the lawsuit. ...

. In 2016, Gash told the story of his work in Africa in the book ''Divine Collision: An African Boy, an American Lawyer, and Their Remarkable Battle for Freedom''. He is also the subject of a documentary called ''Remand'', which covers his work in Uganda.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gash, Jim Living people Abilene Christian University alumni Pepperdine University alumni Pepperdine University faculty American members of the Churches of Christ People from Malibu, California Presidents of Pepperdine University 1967 births People associated with Kirkland & Ellis