We are deeply saddened by the passing of United States District Judge Marcia Cooke who passed away Friday. Judge Cooke became ill last year on a flight home from a Hawaiian vacation and has been hospitalized ever since.
2023 has started off as a year of loss. Let's hope this trend does not continue.
David Markus runs the SDFL blog and that is the appropriate place for friends and colleagues to post remembrances of Judge Cooke. Click here.
We did not appear much in front of Judge Cooke. But a few years ago, we were asked to assist a colleague on a fraud sentencing. Judge Cooke did not like the charges. She was not impressed by the client. But she did admire our colleague and it remains in our mind an example of how superb lawyering can move a judge who is open minded- as Judge Cooke's sentence was eminently fair and reasonable.
It is almost a disservice to the memory of Judge Cooke to start listing all of the "firsts" of her career. Because she was so much more than just a remarkable woman who shattered glass ceilings. She was a force of law, reason, and justice. Whip smart, powerful in her knowledge of the law and people, in summarizing her career on the bench, it suffices to simply say this: when you walked out of her courtroom after a hearing, you said to yourself, having won or lost: "Now that is what a Judge should be. Wow. "
Judge Cooke's untimely death is a loss that is irreplaceable for our legal community.