Ms. Cooke was appointed to the position of U.S. Magistrate Judge in November, 1999. Prior to her appointment, she was a partner in the law firm of McDonald Carano Wilson McCune Bergin Frankovich & Hicks LLP where she devoted her practice to creditors' rights in bankruptcy and commercial litigation. The Northern Nevada Women Lawyers Association named Judge Cooke as the 2001 recipient of the Outstanding Women Lawyer Award. In May, 2003, she visited Argentina on behalf of the State Department's Office of International Programs and made presentations on the role of the U.S. Magistrate Judge in the federal judiciary. Judge Cooke is also a member of the Ninth Circuit Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee.