James Patrick Sexton is a PhD researcher in public international law at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut and the University of Amsterdam. At the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, James is a member of the research strand: 'In the Public Interest: Accountability of the State and the Prosecution of Crimes'. In addition, James is the Managing Editor for the Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law.

James holds an LL.M. in Public International Law (cum laude) from Leiden University (2021) and an LL.B. in Scots Law (first-class honours) from the University of Glasgow (2020), the latter of which included a year of study at the University of Copenhagen (2018-2019). Prior to his current role at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, James contributed to several projects within the context of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) as a junior researcher. Before this, he was a legal intern on the MATRA Project 'Strengthening Ukraine's Capacity to Investigate and Prosecute International Crimes' and was the editorial assistant for the Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law. 

James also previously worked at the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum’s International Humanitarian Law Clinic, first as a student researcher and then as a junior supervisor. In these capacities, James contributed to the research project 'IHL in Action: Respect for the Law on the Battlefield' carried out in collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross.

James' PhD research focuses on the interaction between unilateral sanctioning practices and international criminal justice and examines whether unilateral sanctions support or undermine the goals of international criminal justice, in particular the fight against impunity for international crimes. James' wider research interests lie within the law of armed conflict, international criminal law, unilateral sanctions, and the (international) legal aspects of countering terrorism.