Biography

He was born in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 on August 6, 1867, the son of Isaac and Julia Elkus. He was educated in the public schools of the city and in the College of the City of New York. He took his law degree at Columbia and was admitted to the bar in 1888.

In 1902, Elkus' firm James, Schell & Elkus, merged with a firm headed by Joseph M. Proskauer, creating the firm of Elkus, Gleason & Proskauer, a predecessor of the law firm of Proskauer Rose

Proskauer Rose

Proskauer Rose is one of the largest law firms in the United States, with twelve offices in the United States and around the world...

.

In 1910 Elkus was appointed Special Assistant to the United States Attorney for the prosecution of bankruptcy frauds. In 1911 he was Counsel for the New York State Factory Investigating Committee engaged in framing legislation dealing with child labor, working hours for women, fire protection, and similar safeguards for factory workers.

He also served as Chairman of the Reconstruction Commission of this State that proposed a major reorganization of state government to Governor Alfred E. Smith, and for many years he served as a member of the State Board of Regents (which oversees the New York State education system).

In 1916 he was appointed by Woodrow Wilson

Woodrow Wilson

Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...

 to be the United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire

United States Ambassador to Turkey

The United States of America has maintained many high level contacts with Turkey since the nineteenth century.-Chargé d'Affaires:*George W. Erving *David Porter -Minister Resident:*David Porter *Dabney Smith Carr...

 in Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

. While there he also represented the interests of Great Britain, France, Italy, Russia and Belgium which were then at war with the Ottomans. In April 1917, when the United States entered World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 against Germany, he was recalled, but serious illness prevented his homecoming for many months. The U.S. never declared war against the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

.

In 1913

New York state election, 1913

The 1913 New York state election was held on November 4, 1913, to elect the Chief Judge and an associate judge of the New York Court of Appeals, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly.-Background:...

 and 1920, he ran for Judge of the New York Court of Appeals

New York Court of Appeals

The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the U.S. state of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six associate judges who are appointed by the Governor to 14-year terms...

, but was twice defeated. On November 12, 1919, Governor Alfred E. Smith appointed him to fill the vacancy caused by the death of William H. Cuddeback

William H. Cuddeback

William Herman Cuddeback was an American lawyer and politician from New York, with his career culminating in his election to the New York Court of Appeals in 1912.-Biography:...

. Elkus served on the court until December 31, 1920, and then accepted an appointment as one of the League of Nations

League of Nations

The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...

 Commissioners to settle the Aland Islands

Åland Islands

The Åland Islands form an archipelago in the Baltic Sea. They are situated at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia and form an autonomous, demilitarised, monolingually Swedish-speaking region of Finland...

 dispute between Finland and Sweden.

On October 15, 1947 he died at his home in Red Bank, New Jersey

Red Bank, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 11,844 people, 5,201 households, and 2,501 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,639.1 people per square mile . There were 5,450 housing units at an average density of 3,055.0 per square mile...

.

External links

• Biography at the Historical Society of the Courts of New York State, which served as the source for much of this article.