Quick Facts
Biography
Lawrence E. Kahn (born December 8, 1937) is a United States federal judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York.
Born in Troy, New York, Kahn graduated from Union College with an A.B. in 1959 and Harvard Law School with a J.D. in 1962. He studied at Oxford University and then practiced law with his brother in Albany, New York, from 1963 to 1973.
Originally a Democrat allied with Dan O'Connell and Erastus Corning 2nd, Kahn was Albany, New York's Assistant Corporation Counsel from 1963 to 1968.
After the Democratic Party in Albany County was not receptive to his desire to become a judge, Kahn switched parties. As a Republican he served as Albany County Surrogate Court Judge from 1973 to 1979.
In 1980 Kahn became a Justice of the New York Supreme Court, and he served until 1996.
He was nominated to the court by President Bill Clinton on April 18, 1996, to the federal district judgeship vacated by Neal P. McCurn. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 16, 1996 and received his commission on August 1, 1996. Kahn assumed senior status on August 1, 2007.