Florence-Marie Cooper (February 9, 1940 – January 15, 2010) 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, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the Central District of California The United States District Court for the Central District of California (in case citations, C.D. Cal.; commonly referred to as the CDCA or CACD) is a Federal trial court that serves over 19 million people in Southern and Central California, ...

Early life and education

Cooper was born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada and moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

with her family in 1952. Cooper graduated from high school in 1958 and began working as a legal secretary. She attended night classes at

City College of San Francisco City College of San Francisco (CCSF or City College) is a public community college in San Francisco, California. Founded as a junior college in 1935, the college plays an important local role, annually enrolling as many as one in nine San Franci ...

for five years, but did not graduate from the school. In 1971, her husband's job was transferred to Los Angeles, and Cooper began attending Beverly Law School under a program for students who had not graduated from college. During that time, Beverly Law School merged into Whittier College School of Law, from which Cooper received her Juris Doctor in 1975 as the top student in her class.

Legal and academic career

Cooper served as law clerk for Judge Arthur Alarcon, Los Angeles Superior Court, Appellate Department (1975–1977). She served as deputy city attorney of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, California (1977). She was senior research attorney for Judge Arthur Alarcon, Second Appellate District, California Court of Appeal (1978–1980). She was a senior research attorney for Judge Woods, Second Appellate District, California Court of Appeal (1980–1983). She was an adjunct professor at San Fernando Valley College School of Law (1980–1985).

Judicial career

State judicial service

Cooper was court commissioner of the

Los Angeles Superior Court The Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, is the California superior court with jurisdiction over Los Angeles County, which includes the city of Los Angeles. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States. The ...

from 1983 to 1990. She then served as a judge of Los Angeles Municipal Court from 1990 to 1991 and of the Los Angeles Superior Court from 1991 to 1999.

Federal judicial service

She was nominated by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

on July 14, 1999, to a seat vacated by Linda H. McLaughlin on the

. She was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on November 10, 1999, and received her commission on November 15, 1999. She served as a United States district judge until her death of

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enla ...

on January 15, 2010, aged 69.

In popular culture

Cooper is portrayed briefly by actress

Elizabeth McGovern Elizabeth Lee McGovern (born July 18, 1961) is an American actress and musician. She has received many awards, including a Screen Actors Guild Award, three Golden Globe Award nominations, and one Academy Award nomination. Born in Evanston, Ill ...

in the 2015 feature film '' Woman in Gold''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Florence-Marie 1940 births 2010 deaths 20th-century American judges 20th-century American women judges 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges Canadian emigrants to the United States California state court judges Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from lymphoma Judges of the United States District Court for the Central District of California People from Santa Monica, California People from Vancouver Superior court judges in the United States United States district court judges appointed by Bill Clinton Whittier Law School alumni