WASHINGTON -- What was described as the trial of the century made lawyer Johnny Cochran a household name.

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Lawyer Johnnie Cochran Dies

His defense of football great O.J. Simpson on double murder charges created controversy and won an acquittal.

Cochran, 67, was born in Louisiana and grew up in Los Angeles. After law school he quickly became known for working on civil rights and discrimination cases.

As Cochran became famous, he gained celebrity clients. He arranged for an out-of-court settlement with the boy who accused Michael Jackson of molesting him in 1993.

But it was the Simpson trial that gave Cochran star power.

In 2001, at the newly opened offices of The Cochran Firm, in D.C., he announced his role as co-counsel in a hospital negligence suit brought by the family of Thomas Morris Jr., one of the two employees of the Brentwood post office who died from exposure to an anthrax laced letter.

Prince George's County attorney Jimmy Bell was lead counsel for the suit. He said he first met Cochran a decade ago as a new college graduate considering law school.

Bells said Cochran encouraged him to go to law school. He said Cochran considered him a smart man who would make a fine lawyer. Bell also said Cochran taught him the value of little things when dealing with a jury.

Funeral arrangements for Cochran have not yet been announced.