George Zerdin Medalie (November 21, 1883 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

– March 5, 1946 in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

) was an American lawyer and politician.

Life

Medalie graduated from Columbia College, with

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

honors, in 1905 and from Columbia Law School in 1907. He began practicing law in New York City and went on to serve as the Special Assistant New York State Attorney General in charge of the prosecution of election fraud from 1926 to 1928. In 1931, he was appointed by President

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in eight New York counties: New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess and Sullivan. Establishe ...

. Medalie appointed

Thomas E. Dewey Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: although ...

as his Chief Assistant, and when Medalie resigned in November 1933, Dewey acted as U.S. Attorney for a month. In

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

, he ran on the Republican ticket for U.S. Senator from New York, but was defeated by the incumbent Democrat

Robert F. Wagner Robert Ferdinand Wagner I (June 8, 1877May 4, 1953) was an American politician. He was a Democratic U.S. Senator from New York from 1927 to 1949. Born in Prussia, Wagner migrated with his family to the United States in 1885. After graduating ...

. On September 28, 1945, he was appointed by Dewey, now Governor, to the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by t ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of John T. Loughran as

Chief Judge A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...

, and died in office. He died of acute bronchitis.

Gladys Heldman Gladys Medalie Heldman (May 13, 1922 – June 22, 2003) was an American tennis player, manager and magazine publisher. She was the founder of ''World Tennis'' magazine. As a manager, she supported and represented Billie Jean King and eight other f ...

was his daughter and Arthur Medalie was his son.

Sources

''The History of the New York Court of Appeals, 1932-2003''
by

Bernard S. Meyer Bernard Stern Meyer (June 7, 1916 Baltimore, Maryland – September 3, 2005 Valley Stream, Nassau County, New York) was an American lawyer and politician. Life He graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 1936, and from University of Maryland S ...

, Burton C. Agata & Seth H. Agata (page 22)

Court of Appeals judges
''JUDGE G.Z. MEDALIE DIES IN ALBANY AT 62''
in NYT on March 6, 1946 (subscription required) {{DEFAULTSORT:Medalie, George Zerdin Judges of the New York Court of Appeals 1883 births 1946 deaths Columbia Law School alumni United States Attorneys for the Southern District of New York 20th-century American judges Lawyers from New York City 20th-century American lawyers Columbia College (New York) alumni