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The Honourable
Jim Cowan
CM KC
The Honourable Jim Cowan CM KC
Senator for Nova Scotia
	In office; March 24, 2005 – January 22, 2017
Nominated by	Paul Martin
Appointed by	Adrienne Clarkson
Leader of the Senate Liberal Caucus
	In office; January 29, 2014 – June 15, 2016
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Joseph A. Day
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
	In office; November 3, 2008 – November 4, 2015
Preceded by	Céline Hervieux-Payette
Succeeded by	Claude Carignan
Personal details
Born	January 22, 1942 (age 82); Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Political party	Liberal (until 2014); Senate Liberal; (2014-present)
Spouse	Shelagh Cowan
Relations	Halifax, Nova Scotia
Children	Robert, David, Peter and Suzanne Cowan
Alma mater	Dalhousie University; London School of Economics
Occupation	lawyer
Profession	politician
Committees	Standing Committee of Selection, Standing Committee on Aboriginal Peoples, Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry
Portfolio	Leader of the Opposition in the Senate

James S. Cowan CM KC (born January 22, 1942) is a Canadian lawyer, a senator from Nova Scotia from 2005 to 2017, and was Leader of the Opposition in the Senate from 2008 to 2015 and leader of the Independent Liberal caucus until June 15, 2016. Cowan was a lawyer and a partner at the legal firm Stewart McKelvey from 1967 until 2020.^[1] He retired from the senate on January 22, 2017, having reached the mandatory retirement age for senators.

Education

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree and Bachelor of Law degree from Dalhousie University, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He received his Master of Laws degree in 1966 from the London School of Economics.

Nova Scotia politics

In November 1985, Cowan announced he would seek the leadership of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party,^[2] but was defeated by Vince MacLean at the February 1986 leadership convention.^[3]

Senate

He was appointed to the Senate on the advice of prime minister Paul Martin on March 24, 2005 as a Liberal Party of Canada Senator.^[4] In 2008, he was appointed Leader of the Opposition in the Senate of Canada

In 2012, it was reported that Cowan and other Senate leaders allowed Senator Joyce Fairbairn to continue voting on legislative matters for four months after she was declared legally incompetent due to dementia caused by Alzheimer's disease.^[5]

Leader of the Independent Senate Liberal Caucus

On January 29, 2014, Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau announced all Liberal Senators, including Cowan, were removed from the Liberal caucus, and would continue sitting as Independents.^[6] The Senators continued to refer to themselves as the Senate Liberal Caucus even if they are no longer members of the parliamentary Liberal caucus.^[7] Liberal senators reaffirmed Cowan as their leader in 2014 through internal elections.^[8]

At the time that Trudeau removed Cowan and his fellow Liberal Senators from the Liberal caucus, Cowan's daughter Suzanne served as a senior advisor to Trudeau.

When the Liberal Party formed government following the 2015 federal election, new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did not appoint Senator Cowan as Government Senate Leader. The position was replaced with the Representative of the Government in the Senate and assigned to independent Senator Peter Harder leaving Cowan as leader of the Independent Liberal caucus.^[9] Cowan stepped down as Liberal Senate Caucus leader on June 15, 2016. He retired from the Senate upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75 on January 22, 2017.

Family

Samuel Rettie is Cowan's great-great uncle.^[10]

References

^ "James Cowan". Dying With Dignity Canada. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
^ "Halifax lawyer seeking N.S. Liberal leadership". The Globe and Mail, November 2, 1985.
^ "New N.S. Liberal leader expects to get ammunition from Ottawa". The Globe and Mail, February 24, 1986.
^ "Cowan, Dallaire, Eggleton named senators". The Chronicle Herald. 25 March 2005. Archived from the original on 26 March 2005. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
^ "Alberta senator allowed to vote four months after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s," Global News, August 27, 2012.
^ "Justin Trudeau removes senators from Liberal caucus". CBC News. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
^ "Trudeau's expulsion catches Liberal senators by surprise". Globe and Mail. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
^ Senators reaffirm Sen. Cowan as leader of Liberal Senate caucus, to hold formal Senate elections in future, Hill Times; "Senate Liberals to elect new leader and new caucus executive in next session of Parliament," Hill Times, June 29, 2015.
^ "Justin Trudeau names seven new senators". The Toronto Star, March 18, 2016.
^ Cowan, Mrs. Gordon (1966–1967), Notes on the Rettie family of Truro, Nova Scotia, Dalhousie University Archives, File MS-2-173, SF Box 14, Folder 7, archived from the original on 3 March 2016, retrieved 14 September 2013