James William Tobin (1808 – July 24, 1881) was a merchant, official and politician in Newfoundland. He served as a member of the Legislative Council of Newfoundland. The son of , a Halifax merchant, and Eleanor Lanigan, he was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia but had moved to Newfoundland by 1828. Tobin formed a firm in partnership with John Bayley Bland in 1831 which operated a packet service between Halifax and St. John's, and was also involved in general inter-colonial trade. The partnership was dissolved in 1839 but Tobin continued operations in partnership with James B. Hutton. The new firm, James Tobin and Company, also became heavily involved in the seal fishery. In 1834, he married Emily Cecilia Bullen.