Eugene A. Cook


Eugene Augustus Cook, III was a Justice of the Texas Supreme Court from September 1, 1988 to December 31, 1992.

Early life, education, and career

Born in Houston, Texas to Eugene A. Cook, Jr. and Estelle Mary Cook, he attended Milby High School, and received a B.A. in accounting from the University of Houston in 1961, followed by a J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1966. Following his admission to the bar, he joined the firm of Butler and Binion, of which he became a partner from 1973 until he left in 1985 to start his own firm, Cook, Davis & McFall.

Judicial service

On August 19, 1988, Governor Bill Clements appointed Cook to a seat on the Texas Supreme Court. He was sworn in on September 1, 1988, and was elected to a full term on the Court in November.
While serving on the court, Cook chaired the Committee on Professionalism, which drafted The Texas Lawyer's Creed – A Mandate for Professionalism, a code of professionalism for the state, of which Cook "was the principal architect". Cook was named a Distinguished Alumnus of the Houston Law Center in 1990, and received an LL.M. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1992.

Post-judicial service

Cook ran for reelection to the court in 1992, but was defeated by Rose Spector, who became the first woman elected to the court. Cook thereafter returned to Houston to serve as senior partner and head of the appellate group at Bracewell & Giuliani. Cook retired from that position in 2002. On November 12, 2011, Cook was honored by the Freedoms Foundation for his "outstanding work in promoting good citizenship principles".