Joseph Cohen was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 lawyer, academic, and politician.

Born in Russayn, Russian Empire

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

, the son of Myer Cohen, a Jewish clergyman, and Rebecca Benyash, Cohen emigrated to Canada in 1892 settling in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

. He studied at the High School of Montreal, McGill University

McGill University

Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

, and at the Université Laval

Université Laval

Laval University is the oldest centre of education in Canada and was the first institution in North America to offer higher education in French...

 in Quebec. He studied law under Samuel William Jacobs

Samuel William Jacobs

For the Australian footballer see Sam Jacobs Samuel William Jacobs, K.C., was a Canadian lawyer, Member of Parliament and a leader of the Canadian Jewish community. For many years he was the only Jewish MP in the Canadian House of Commons...

 and was called to the Bar of Quebec in 1913. He was created a King's Counsel in 1926.

A criminal lawyer, he practiced in Montreal. He first ran for the Legislative Assembly of Quebec

Legislative Assembly of Quebec

The Legislative Assembly of Quebec was the name of the lower house of Quebec's legislature until 1968, when it was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. At the same time, the upper house of the legislature, the Legislative Council, was abolished...

 for Montréal-Saint-Laurent

Montréal-Saint-Laurent

Montréal-Saint-Laurent was a provincial electoral district in the province of Quebec, Canada. Located in the Montreal region, the riding was formed in 1890 from parts of Montreal-Ouest. The riding existed until 1939 when it was part of Montreal-Sainte-Anne and Montreal-Saint-Jacques. It was also...

 in 1923 but was defeated. He was elected in 1927

17th Legislative Assembly of Quebec

The 17th Legislative Assembly of Quebec was the provincial legislature that existed in Quebec, Canada from May 16, 1927 to August 24, 1931. The Quebec Liberal Party, led by Louis-Alexandre Taschereau as Premier of Quebec, was the governing party....

 and re-elected in 1931

18th Legislative Assembly of Quebec

The 18th Legislative Assembly of Quebec is the provincial legislature that existed in Quebec, Canada from August 24, 1931 to November 25, 1935. The Quebec Liberal Party led by Louis-Alexandre Taschereau was elected another majority in the elections....

 and 1935

19th Legislative Assembly of Quebec

The 19th Legislative Assembly of Quebec was the provincial legislature that existed in Quebec, Canada for less than a year from November 25, 1935 to August 17, 1936. The Quebec Liberal Party led by Louis-Alexandre Taschereau was in power for another consecutive term but he was replaced a few months...

. In 1936, the election results were declared invalid and he did not run in the resulting by-election.

From 1952 to 1961, he was a professor of criminal law

Criminal law

Criminal law, is the body of law that relates to crime. It might be defined as the body of rules that defines conduct that is not allowed because it is held to threaten, harm or endanger the safety and welfare of people, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on people who do not obey...

 at McGill University. He died in Montreal in 1973 and was buried in Montreal in the cemetery of the Congregation Shaar Hashomayim

Shaarey Shomayim

-United States:*Congregation Sha'arai Shomayim **Sha'arai Shomayim Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama*First Roumanian-American congregation , Manhattan, New York...

.