James Laxer

James Robert Laxer (22 December 1941 – 23 February 2018), also known as Jim Laxer, was Canadian political economist and professor at York University. He was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. 
In 1971, Laxer ran for the leadership of the federal NDP. He won one-third of the vote against party stalwart David Lewis.
In 1981, he was hired as director of research for the federal NDP. He left in controversy in 1983. This is when he published a report critiquing the party's economic policies as being "out of date".
Laxer died on 23 February 2018 in Paris, France of a suspected heart attack at the age of 76.