James Kirkpatrick Kerr was born on August 1, 1841, in Guelph, Wellington County, Ontario.

He was a Canadian lawyer and Senator. He was called to the bar of Upper Canada in 1862 and began a legal partnership with Edward Blake, Samuel Blake, and James Bethune. In 1884, he became head of the legal firm of Kerr, Davidson, Paterson, and Grant. In his career, Kerr argued several cases before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and was elected a Bencher of the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1879. He became president of the Ontario Liberal Association in 1892 and was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 1903. He served as Speaker of the Senate of Canada during the 11th Parliament from January 14, 1909, to October 22, 1911. Kerr was also an active Mason and was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Canada from 1875 to 1877. Active in commerce, he sat on several boards of directors including the Canadian General Electric Company. He was one of the founders of Havergal College, Toronto. As a former Speaker of the Senate of Canada, Kerr was given membership in the Queen's Privy Council for Canada in 1911.

In 1864, he married Anne Margaret Blake (1840–1882) and abt. 1895, he remarried Adelaide Cecil Stanley Pinhorne (1862-1932). He died on December 4, 1916, in Toronto, Ontario.