Lawrence Henry Cooke (October 15, 1914,

Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...

Sullivan County, New York Sullivan County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,624. The county seat is Monticello. The county's name honors Major General John Sullivan, who was labeled at the time as a hero in th ...

– August 17, 2000, Monticello, Sullivan Co., NY) was an American lawyer and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. He was

Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals The Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, also known as the Chief Judge of New York, supervises the seven-judge New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the supreme court, highest court in the Judiciary of New York ...

from 1979 to 1984.

Life

He was the son of George L. Cooke and Mary E. (Pond) Cooke. He graduated from

Monticello High School (New York) Monticello High School is a four-year public high school in Monticello, New York. According to state test scores, 93% of students are at least proficient in math and 92% in reading. Notable alumni *Stephanie Blythe, opera singer * Lawrence H. C ...

, from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

in 1935, and from the

Albany Law School Albany Law School is a private law school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1851 and is the oldest independent law school in the nation. It is accredited by the American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary ...

in 1938. After opening a law office in Monticello in 1939, he was elected Supervisor of the Town of Thompson for two terms. He married Alice McCormack, and they had three children. His judicial career began in 1953 when he was elected county judge, surrogate and Children's Court judge of Sullivan County. In November 1961, he was elected unopposed a justice of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

, and was appointed to the Appellate Division in 1968. In

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

, he ran for the Court of Appeals on the Democratic and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

tickets but was defeated. In

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

, he and

Jacob D. Fuchsberg Jacob David Fuchsberg (June 14, 1913, Manhattan, New York City – August 27, 1995, Port Chester, New York, Port Chester, Westchester County, New York) was an American lawyer and politician. He was elected to the Court of Appeals as an associ ...

were the last two judges elected to the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the supreme court, highest court in the Judiciary of New York (state), Unified Court System of the New York (state), State of New York. It consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeal ...

. In 1977, a constitutional amendment made the judgeships appointive. He was the first

Chief Judge Chief judge may refer to: In lower or circuit courts The highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. * Chief judge (Australia) * Chief judge (United States) In supreme courts Some of Chief ...

appointed by the Governor. He was nominated by Governor Hugh L. Carey on January 2, 1979, and confirmed by the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

on January 23, 1979. He retired from the bench at the end of 1984 when he reached the constitutional age limit of 70 years. He died at his home in Monticello, and was buried at the Rock Ridge Cemetery there.

His opinions

*In '' In re Rothko'', he wrote the court's opinion finding that the executors of the estate of abstract expressionist painter

Mark Rothko Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract art, abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular reg ...

violated their

fiduciary duties A fiduciary is a person who holds a legal or ethical relationship of trust with one or more other parties (legal person or group of persons). Typically, a fiduciary prudently takes care of money or other assets for another person. One party, for ...

to the beneficiaries of Rothko's estate. *In '' People v. Rogers'', he wrote in the majority opinion that once a lawyer has entered a proceeding in what may develop into a criminal case, the police must cease questioning the suspect, and that a waiver of the right to counsel may be made only in the presence of counsel. *In ''

Beach v. Shanley A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shells ...

'', he wrote the court's opinion that the

Shield law A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...

permits a

reporter A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

who has been called before a

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

to withhold the name of confidential sources without being subject to any sanction for criminal contempt. *In ''

Sharrock v. Dell Buick-Cadillac Sharrock or Sharrocks is an English language surname. It may refer to: * Chris Sharrock (born 1964), British musician * Burgess Sharrocks (1919–1988), British artist * George Sharrock (1910–2005), American politician * Ivan Sharrock (born 19 ...

'', he wrote the majority opinion that a state lien law permitting garage operators to satisfy an overdue bill by auctioning off the delinquent customer's car constituted a state deprivation of property without due process of law under the State Constitution.

Legacy

A number of events and places have been named in his honor, including th
Annual Chief Judge Lawrence H. Cooke State Constitutional Commentary Symposium
and th

His name is also attached to several awards given to law students and lawyers.

Sources

Political Graveyard

Listing of Court of Appeals judges, with portrait

Obit in NYT on August 19, 2000, Tribute to Chief Judge Lawrence H. Cooke, 1914–2000, by

Vincent Martin Bonventre Vincent Martin Bonventre is an American legal scholar. Education Bonventre received his B.S. from Union College in 1972 where he studied electrical engineering and chemistry. Bonventre received a Juris Doctor in 1976 from Brooklyn Law School w ...

, Albany Law Review, vol. 64, page 1, (2000) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooke, Lawrence Henry 1914 births 2000 deaths New York Supreme Court justices Chief judges of the New York Court of Appeals Albany Law School alumni People from Thompson, New York Georgetown University alumni People from Monticello, New York 20th-century New York state court judges Monticello High School (New York) alumni New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Department justices