R. James Harvey

R. James Harvey (born July 4, 1922), usually known as James Harvey, is a politician and jurist from the U.S. state of Michigan.

Harvey was born in Iron Mountain, Michigan. He enrolled in the University of Michigan in 1940, but interrupted his studies in 1942 to serve in the United States Army Air Forces for three years. He earned an LL.B. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1948, was admitted to the bar, and commenced the practice of law in Saginaw, Michigan in 1949. He was assistant city attorney from 1949 to 1953, a city councilman and a member of the Saginaw County board of supervisors from 1955 to 1957. He was mayor of Saginaw from 1957 to 1959.

In 1960, with the help of campaign manager Emil Lockwood, Harvey was elected as a Republican from Michigan's 8th congressional district to the 87th United States Congress. He was subsequently re-elected to the six succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1961 to January 31, 1974. He resigned on January 31, 1974 after being appointed by President Richard Nixon as a judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, serving from 1974 to 1984. He was a United States Senior District judge from 1984 to 2002, and is now a resident of Naples, Florida.