Assistant Division Commander, 2d Marine Division
Brigadier General James W. Lively

Brigadier General Lively is a native of Dallas, Texas.  He graduated from Texas A&M University and was commissioned in 1996.  His career as an infantry officer includes company command in 1st Bn, 5th Marine Regiment and 2d Bn, 2d Marine Regiment; command of Battalion Landing Team 2/6, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit; and command of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.  BGen Lively’s other operational assignments include serving as a platoon commander in 1st Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team Company; a deployment as a combat advisor to an Iraqi Army battalion in Ar Ramadi, Iraq; and a deployment as the Operations Officer for the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

BGen Lively's staff/supporting establishment tours include twice serving on the faculty at the Marine Corps Expeditionary Warfare School as both an instructor and as the school director.  He also served as a Congressional Fellow in the U.S. House of Representatives; Infantry Advocate and Ground Combat Element Branch Head at Headquarters Marine Corps, Plans, Policies and Operations (PP&O); and Assistant Chief of Staff, G-9 (Experimentation and Capability Development) at I Marine Expeditionary Force.

BGen Lively is a distinguished graduate of The Basic School, the Marine Corps Expeditionary Warfare School, the Marine Corps Command and Staff College Distance Education Program, and The National War College.  He holds master’s degrees in international relations and national security strategy and he completed Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program in 2022.