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.
He received his Master of Laws degree in 1966 from the London School of Economics.
[7] Liberal senators reaffirmed Cowan as their leader in 2014 through internal elections.
[9] Cowan stepped down as Liberal Senate Caucus leader on June 15, 2016.