Irving Ben Cooper (February 7, 1902 – September 17, 1996) was an American attorney and jurist who served as a
United States district judge
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...
of the
.
Early life and education
Born on February 7, 1902, in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, Cooper received a
Bachelor of Laws
A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...
in 1925 from the
Washington University School of Law
The Washington University School of Law (WashU Law) is the law school of Washington University in St. Louis, a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1867, it is the oldest continuously operating law school west of the ...
.
Career
Cooper worked in private practice in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, New York, from 1927 to 1938. He served as special counsel for the
New York City Department of Investigation
The New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) is a law enforcement agency of the government of New York City that serves as an independent and nonpartisan watchdog for New York City government. Established in 1873, it is one of the oldest l ...
from 1934 to 1937. He was a magistrate for New York City from 1938 to 1939. He was a justice of the
New York Court of Special Sessions from 1939 to 1960, serving as chief justice from 1951 to 1960, when he resigned, citing the mental strain of the job. He was a lecturer at the
Menninger Foundation
The Menninger Foundation was founded in 1919 by the Menninger family in Topeka, Kansas. The Menninger Foundation, known locally as Menninger's, consists of a clinic, a sanatorium, and a school of psychiatry, all of which bear the Menninger name ...
from 1960 to 1961.
Cooper received a
recess appointment
In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the President of the United States, president of a Officer of the United States, federal official when the United States Senate, U.S. Senate is in Recess (motion), recess. Under the ...
from President
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
on October 5, 1961, to the
, to a new seat authorized by 75 Stat. 80. He was nominated to the same position by President Kennedy on January 15, 1962. His confirmation was opposed by both the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...
and the
New York County Lawyers Association. During the hearings, Cooper was described by witnesses, according to
Time magazine
''Time'' (stylized in all caps as ''TIME'') is an American news magazine based in New York City. It was published weekly for nearly a century. Starting in March 2020, it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York Cit ...
, as "a temperamental tyrant who threw tantrums on the bench like a baby in a high chair." During his testimony at the hearing, Cooper refused to sit down, remaining standing for nearly three hours.
He was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
on September 20, 1962, and received his commission on September 28, 1962. He assumed
senior status on February 7, 1972. His service terminated on September 17, 1996, due to his death in New York City.
Notable cases and judicial philosophy
In 1970, Cooper presided over a claim that organized
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
exerted a monopolistic hold on all
major
Major most commonly refers to:
* Major (rank), a military rank
* Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits
* People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames
* Major and minor in musi ...
and
minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...
teams, and in 1982, a complaint filed by
Jacqueline Onassis
Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular fi ...
that a photographer was harassing her and her daughter,
Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (born November 27, 1957) is an American author, diplomat, and attorney who served as the List of ambassadors of the United States to Australia, United States ambassador to Australia from 2022 to 2024. She previously serv ...
.
During his service as
chief justice of the New York Court of Special Sessions, Cooper wrote yearly reports on the problems regarding the treatment of young offenders in the
criminal justice
Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...
system, asserting "It is not impossible for a sentence to be a greater injustice than the criminal act: equivalent to putting a child with a common cold into a smallpox ward for treatment."
See also
*
List of Jewish American jurists
This is a list of notable Jewish American jurists. For other famous Jewish Americans, see Lists of American Jews.
Supreme Court of the United States
United States courts of appeals
United States district courts
* Ronnie Abrams, J ...
References
External links
Elanor Roosevelt's letter about Judge Cooper's 1953 Report on 'Youthful Offenders'*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20000519185254/http://xroads.virginia.edu/~CLASS/am483_97/projects/brady/supcourt.html The Courts and Baseball'The Case of the Albuquerque Eights' Is Closed; Or White-Collar Crime Is Easy*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Irving Ben
English emigrants to the United States
Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States district court judges appointed by John F. Kennedy
Washington University School of Law alumni
1902 births
1996 deaths
20th-century American lawyers