Henry Isaac Cohen (21 February 1872 – 20 December 1942) was an Australian barrister and politician.
Personal life
Isaac Henry Cohen, always known as Henry Isaac, was born in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
to financier David Cohen and Rachael Marks, both of
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
.
On 27 June 1901 he married Ethel Mary Keon of
Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston () or () is a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia, at the confluence of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River (kanamaluka). As of 2021, Launceston has a population of 87,645. Material was copied ...
.
Cohen retained Jewish associations but his wife was a Catholic; their three sons and two daughters, who adopted the name Keon-Cohen, were brought up as Anglicans and attended Presbyterian schools.
Education
Cohen attended St James' Grammar School, the Melbourne Hebrew School and, from 1885,
Scotch College where he was dux in 1888 and 1889.
A student of
Ormond College
Ormond College is the largest of the residential colleges of the University of Melbourne located in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is home to around 350 undergraduates, 90 graduates and 35 professorial and academic residents.
Hi ...
,
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...
, he graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in 1894 and a
Bachelor of Law
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
with honours in 1895.
Barrister
In 1896 Cohen was called to the bar, but his career progressed slowly in the depressed 1890s. However, after a widely reported case in 1906, he began to prosper, building up a large practice in all jurisdictions except the criminal. He
took silk
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...
in 1920.
Politician and public life
At a by-election in May 1921, Cohen was elected to the
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Co ...
for
Melbourne Province
Melbourne Province was an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Council (Australia).
Melbourne Province was created in 1882 when Central Province was abolished in the redistribution of Provinces. Its area included central Melbourne, Carlto ...
as a
Nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
. He was a minister without portfolio from 1923 to 1924, Minister of Public Works and Mines from March to July 1924,
Attorney-General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general.
In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
and
Solicitor-General in July 1924, Minister of Public Instruction from 1928 to 1929, and Minister of Water Supply and Electrical Undertakings from March to April 1935. He was the unofficial leader of the Nationalist Party in the Legislative Council from 1922 to 1923, 1924 to 1929, and 1935 to 1937. In 1937 he contested
Higinbotham Province
Higinbotham Province was an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Council.
It existed as a two-member electorate from 1937 to 2006, with members serving alternating eight-year terms. It was considered a safe seat for the Liberal throughout ...
but lost to
James Kennedy.
Cohen was a trustee of the Melbourne Exhibition for twenty years from February 1922. Active in welfare movements during the Depression, he was a member of the Slum Abolition Council and the Big Brother Movement and was president of the Children's Welfare Association. Cohen was a foundation member of the Old Scotch Collegians' Club and was president of the Association in 1921-1922.
Death
He died in
Armadale on 20 December 1942.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Henry
1872 births
1942 deaths
Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria
United Australia Party members of the Parliament of Victoria
Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Vice-Presidents of the Board of Land and Works
Attorneys-General of Victoria
Solicitors-General of Victoria
Australian King's Counsel
Jewish Australian politicians
Politicians from Melbourne
Australian people of English-Jewish descent
University of Melbourne alumni