The Government has announced the nomination of John D. Cooke for appointment as a judge of the High Court.
Mr Cooke has been a Judge of the European Court of First Instance since 1996 and served as President of the first Chamber of the Court.
He was the Judge Rapporteur on the Microsoft case, one of the most significant cases in European Community law.
Mr Cooke was admitted to the Bar in 1966, and to the Inner Bar (senior counsel) in 1980. Mr. Cooke was also admitted to the Bars of England and Wales (1971), Northern Ireland (1984) and the Inner Bar of New South Wales (1991).
As a barrister, Mr Cooke had extensive practice in European commercial litigation and international arbitration, specialising in the law of the European Communities and international law, especially in the fields of competition policy, companies, copyright, trademarks and patents.