Charles J. Cooper

Who is Charles J. Cooper?

Charles J. "Chuck" Cooper is an appellate attorney and litigator in Washington, D.C. and a founding member and chairman of the law firm Cooper & Kirk, PLLC. He was named by The National Law Journal as one of the 10 best civil litigators in Washington. He has over 25 years of legal experience in government and private practice, with numerous cases in trial and appellate court as well as several appearances before the United States Supreme Court.

Cooper graduated in 1977 from the University of Alabama Law School. He was an Assistant Attorney General in the United States Department of Justice during the Reagan administration, and played a key role in the Iran–Contra affair of 1986.

In 2012, Cooper led the legal team for the defendant-intervenors in Perry v. Brown, defending California Proposition 8. On March 26, 2013, he argued this case before the Supreme Court.