Jim Coutts

Who was Jim Coutts?

James Allan Coutts, CM was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and former advisor to two prime ministers.

Born in High River, Alberta, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1960 and a law degree in 1961 from the University of Alberta and an MBA from the Harvard Business School in 1968. He was called to Bar of Alberta in 1962.

From 1961 to 1963, he practiced law in Calgary, Alberta. From 1963 to 1966, he was a Secretary to Liberal Prime Minister Lester Pearson. After receiving his MBA, he was a Consultant with McKinsey & Company from 1968 to 1970. From 1970 to 1975, he was a Partner with The Canada Consulting Group. From 1975 to 1981, he was the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau.

In 1981, Trudeau appointed Liberal MP Peter Stollery to the Senate so Coutts could run for the Canadian House of Commons in what was thought of as the safe Ontario riding of Spadina. The plan backfired - the voters rebelled and Coutts narrowly lost to New Democrat Dan Heap. Coutts ran again, but lost by a heavier margin in the 1984 election.

He subsequently left politics and entered business with an international career in industrial explosives. He was a principal of Lowther Consultants Limited and the chairman and chief executive officer of CIC Canadian Investment Capital Limited.