The man that was known as the inspiration for the TV series “Matlock”, Summerville Attorney Bobby Lee Cook passed away Friday.
Bobby Lee Cook was born in Lyerly, Georgia in 1927 and grew up there. He later attended a military school and later joined the Navy. After that he studied law at Vanderbilt University. At 21 he ran for the Georgia House of Representatives from Chattooga County.
While Bobby Lee Cook came back to practice in his hometown, he was also known across the United States. He took on more than 300 murder trails in more than 40 states and even in several other countries. He has worked on multiple high profile cases and his clients have included names like Rockefellers and Carnegies. Cook also represented moonshiners, money launderers, bootleggers and bank fraud schemers. The character of Matlock played by Andy Griffith, was rumored to have been based on Mr. Cook.
Bobby Lee was the first recipient of the Georgia Bar Tradition of Excellence Award and later was inducted into the American Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame in 2009. Despite being known across the nation for his skills in the courtroom, residents of Chattooga County remember Mr. Cook more fondly. Many local lawyers, judges, and businesses remember Mr. Cook as a friend, mentor, and patron. Facebook was flooded yesterday with many condolences for Mr. Cooks family.
Cook is survived by his daughters Kristina Cook Graham, the chief judge of the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, and Sara Cook Williams, as well as several grandchildren.
From AM 1180
