John Cobb Cooper

John Cobb Cooper, Jr. (September 18, 1887-July 22, 1967) was an American jurist, airline executive and presidential advisor.

John Cooper Jr. was born in Jacksonville, Florida to John Cobb and Mary Caldwell Cooper. After graduating from Lawrenceville School in New Jersey, he was educated at Princeton University and received an A.B. in 1909. In 1911 was admitted to the Florida Bar. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1916 and 1924. In 1917 he joined the U.S. Navy, and would reach the rank of lieutenant by the end of World War 1. He was married to Martha Helen Marvel in 1918 and the couple had three children: two girls and a boy. A year later he was relieved from active service and became a member of the Naval Reserve. In 1921 his rank became Lieutenant-Commander.

From 1927–34 he was Editor-in-Chief of the Florida State Bar Association Law Journal. He was appointed to the International Technical Committee of Legal Aerial Experts, 1932–34. He became Vice President of Pan American Airways 1934–45, serving on the board of directors 1944–46. In 1947 he served as a consultant to the U.S. President's Air Policy Commission. He was a member of the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton, 1945–50. In 1952 he was awarded his LL.D. from McGill University. From 1951–57 he was professor of International Air Law at McGill University, becoming the first director of the Institute of International Air Law, and then he was named Professor Emeritus.

He was a pioneer in the field of international law as it applied to air and space. He wrote the first article on the topic of space ownership, "High Altitude Flight and National Sovereignty," in 1951.

Awards and honors

* Honorary Doctor of Laws, Princeton University, 1960. [http://www.princeton.edu/pr/facts/honorary/]
* Cooper crater on the far side of the Moon is named after him.

References

*cite journal
last=Cooper | first=John Cobb
title=Space above the Seas
journal=JAG Journal | year=1959
volume=8 | issue=2 | pages=8
*cite book
first=C. B. | last=Bourne | year=1974
title=Canadian Yearbook of International Law, v. 12
publisher=UBC Press | isbn=0774800372
*cite book
editor=Homer Edward Moyer | year=1935
title=Who's Who and What to See in Florida | pages=77
publisher=Current Historical Company of Florida
url=http://fulltext.fcla.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?idno=SF00000212&c=fhp&seq=91;view=image
accessdate=2008-08-08