James Edwin McPherson[1] (born January 20, 1953)[1][2] is an American government official and retired United States Navy rear admiral.

[3][4] He served as Acting United States Secretary of the Navy from April 7, 2020, to May 29, 2020, following the resignation of Thomas Modly.

He graduated from San Diego State University in 1977 with an undergraduate degree in public administration.

He served as a judge advocate and trial counsel at several Navy commands and ships before and after completing his graduate training in 1991.

In December 1995, he joined the staff of the Vice Chief of Naval Operations as the Assistant for Legal and Legislative Matters.

On October 13, 2017, President Donald Trump announced the nomination of McPherson to become the General Counsel of the United States Department of the Army.