Matthew M. Levy

This article is about the American politician from New York. For other uses, see Matthew Levy (disambiguation).

Matthew M. Levy
Levy c. 1941
Justice of the New York Supreme Court
In office
January 1, 1951 – September 4, 1971
Judge of the New York City
Municipal Court, 1st District
In office
January 1, 1938 – December 31, 1938
Appointed byFiorello La Guardia
Preceded byMichael B. McHugh
Succeeded byDenis R. Sheil
Personal details
Born
Matthew Malitz Levy

(1899-03-01)March 1, 1899
Brest-Litovsk, Congress Poland, Russian Empire
DiedSeptember 4, 1971(1971-09-04) (aged 72)
New York City, U.S.
Political partySocialist (before 1936)
American Labor (1936–1944)
Liberal (after 1944)
Democratic (after 1950)
Other political
affiliations		Social Democratic Federation (after 1936)
Spouse
Pearl Gold Spivak
​
(m. 1922)​
Alma materUniversity of Georgia (B.S.)
Harvard Law School (LL.B.)
OccupationLawyer, politician, judge
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1918
Rank2nd Lieutenant
Battles/warsWorld War I

Matthew Malitz Levy[1] (March 1, 1899 – September 4, 1971) was a Polish-born Jewish American lawyer, politician and judge who served as a justice of the New York Supreme Court from 1951[2] until his death in 1971.[3] He previously served as a special assistant attorney general in 1927[4][5] and 1937,[6][7] then was appointed a judge of the New York City Municipal Court by mayor Fiorello La Guardia,[8] serving in 1938.[9]

Biography

Matthew Malitz Levy was born on March 1, 1899 in Brest-Litovsk, Congress Poland, the fourth of eight children. He emigrated with his family to the United States in 1903, settling in Savannah, Georgia. He first became interested in the law as a youth, skipping school to go to the courthouse and watch Confederate veteran and judge Peter Meldrim. After graduating high school, he enrolled in the University of Georgia, but paused his studies to enlist in the U.S. Army during World War I. Upon returning home, he earned degrees from Georgia in 1919 and Harvard Law School in 1922 before moving to New York City, where he met his wife Pearl Gold Spivak.[10]

Levy settled in the Bronx, where he worked as a labor lawyer and became law partners with former Socialist judge Jacob Panken.[3] Levy himself had been politically active since his time at Harvard, where he was a member of the university's Liberal Union. He campaigned for Progressive Senator Robert M. La Follette in the 1924 presidential election, then for Socialist Norman Thomas in the 1928 and 1932 presidential elections.[10]

Levy entered electoral politics as a Socialist, running unsuccessfully for State Supreme Court in 1934.[11] He left the party to join the Social Democratic Federation and the American Labor Party in 1936,[12] standing as the ALP candidate for New York City Municipal Court in 1938,[13] Bronx Borough President in 1941,[14] and Supreme Court in 1943.[15] He was finally elected to the Supreme Court in 1950, running on a joint Liberal-Democratic ticket. He was re-elected in 1964, serving until his death in 1971, just months before he was set to retire.[3]

During his judicial career, Levy became known for writing lengthy opinions that were rarely overturned by higher courts.[16] In 1958, the Harvard Law Record named him a "Scholar on the Bench."[10]

References

  1. ^ "Georgia, U.S., World War I Service Cards, 1917-1919 for Matthew Malitz Levy". ancestry.com. United States Department of War. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  2. ^ "Supreme Court Seats to Levy, Brady and Gold". Daily News. New York. November 8, 1950. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c "MATTHEW M. LEVY, JUSTICE, 72, DEAD". The New York Times. New York. September 5, 1971. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  4. ^ "Say Turkish bath houses 19 voters". Brooklyn Daily Times. Brooklyn. November 2, 1927. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  5. ^ "Murder of jeweler and 2 new robberies spur hunt for gang". Brooklyn Daily Times. Brooklyn. May 2, 1931. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  6. ^ "La Guardia sends police to watch slow P.R. clerks". The Standard-Star. New Rochelle. November 8, 1937. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  7. ^ Who's Who In America. Chicago: A.N. Marquis Company. 1966–1967. p. 1,257. Retrieved June 19, 2025.
  8. ^ "Levy Lives in Bare Room to Keep Judgeship; Moved Hastily to District to Be Eligible". The New York Times. New York. January 4, 1938. Retrieved June 19, 2025.
  9. ^ "The Judgeships". Daily News. New York. October 21, 1938. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  10. ^ a b c "Matthew Levy, New York Judge, Known as Scholar on the Bench". Harvard Law Record. 27 (2). Cambridge: 2. October 2, 1958. Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  11. ^ "Some of the candidates for New York City and State offices". The Jewish Daily Forward. New York. October 28, 1934. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  12. ^ "SDF News". The New Leader. New York. October 23, 1943. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  13. ^ "Candidates for state wide offices on the American Labor Party ticket in Tuesday's election in New York". The Jewish Daily Forward. New York. November 6, 1938. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  14. ^ "Leading Labor Party candidates in Tuesday's election in New York". The Jewish Daily Forward. New York. November 2, 1941. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  15. ^ "Vote For American Labor Party Candidates!–Vote Row "C"". The Jewish Daily Forward. New York. October 31, 1943. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  16. ^ "Thorough Jurist; Matthew Malitz Levy". The New York Times. New York. March 16, 1965. Retrieved July 3, 2025.


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