Justice Isaac M. Kapper was born around 1864. He earned the money for his tuition at New York Law School through jobs such as shining shoes and waiting tables. He graduated in 1887 and was admitted to the bar in the following year. Kapper began practicing as a trial attorney with a specialization in negligence cases. He was also active in politics, serving as chairman of the law committee for the Kings County Democratic Party, and as chief counsel and adviser. He became an Assistant District Attorney for Brooklyn in 1898. In 1901, Governor Theodore Roosevelt named Kapper to a commission formed to draw up a charter for New York City.
In 1909, Kapper was elected as a State Supreme Court Justice and was reelected in 1923. That same year, Governor Alfred E. Smith designated him to the Appellate Division, Second Department. He retired from the bench in 1935 and afterward served as an official referee for the Appellate Division, Second Department from 1936 until 1941.
Kapper was at one time vice president of the Brooklyn Law Association.
He married Lucy S. Burnham in 1889 and had a son. Kapper and his wife were in Austria during the outbreak of World War I, but were able to escape through Geneva and Paris. He died on March 25, 1944 in Brooklyn at the age of 79.
Sources
“Admitted to the Bar.” New York Times (1857-1922): 8. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851-2008). Mar 29 1888. Web. 8 Feb. 2012.
“Isaac Kapper Dies; A Jurist 26 Years.” New York Times (1923-Current file): 41. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851-2007). Mar 26 1944. Web. 9 Feb. 2012.