Thomas Collier Platt Jr. (May 29, 1925 – March 4, 2017) was 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

United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (in case citations, E.D.N.Y.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction spans five List of counties in New York, counties in ...

from 1974 to 2017 and its chief judge from 1988 to 1995.

Education and career

A great-grandson of former

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

Thomas Collier Platt Thomas Collier Platt (July 15, 1833 – March 6, 1910), also known as Tom Platt

, he was born on May 29, 1925, 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 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 in the

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

from 1943 to 1946. He received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1947, and 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 ...

from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...

in 1950. While in law school, Platt married Anne Byrd Symington in 1948. After engaging in private practice in

from 1950 to 1953, he became an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gov ...

of the Eastern District of New York, serving from 1953 to 1956. He then returned to private practice in New York City, while also serving as an attorney for Village of Laurel Hollow, New York from 1958 to 1974, and acting police justice in the Village of Lloyd Harbor, New York from 1958 to 1963.

Federal judicial service

Platt was nominated by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

on January 31, 1974, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge George Rosling. 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 March 1, 1974, and received his commission on March 8, 1974. At the time of his nomination, he was the first federal district court judge from Suffolk County, New York. He served as Chief Judge of the Eastern District from 1988 to 1995. After over 25 years of active service, Platt assumed senior status on February 1, 2001, and served in that capacity until his death on March 4, 2017, in North Branford,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

."Thomas Platt, 91, Dies: Fined Air Traffic Controllers $100,000 an Hour"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', March 6, 2017.

References

External links

* 1925 births 2017 deaths Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York United States district court judges appointed by Richard Nixon United States Navy sailors People from Laurel Hollow, New York People from Lloyd Harbor, New York Military personnel from New York City United States Navy personnel of World War II Yale Law School alumni Assistant United States attorneys United States Navy reservists {{US-federal-judge-stub