William J. Hooks was appointed the 26th State Reporter by the Court of Appeals, effective June 25, 2009. A native of Brooklyn, Mr. Hooks is a graduate of Le Moyne College and Albany Law School and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1980. He joined the Law Reporting Bureau in 1981 as a legal editor under State Reporter John T. Fitzpatrick, was appointed Assistant State Reporter in 1990 by State Reporter Frederick A. Muller, and was appointed Deputy State Reporter in 2008 by State Reporter Gary D. Spivey. Mr Hooks succeeds Mr. Spivey, who retired on June 24, 2009.

Mr. Hooks is a member of the New York State Bar Association's Intellectual Property Section, President of the Association of Reporters of Judicial Decisions, and has served on the Board of Regents of Le Moyne College. He and his wife, Nancy, have three children and live in Latham.