[The Cooper Companies -- Letterhead]


NEWS RELEASE
         CONTACT:
         Norris Battin
         The Cooper Companies, Inc.
         ir@coopercompanies.com
         FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


               THE COOPER COMPANIES COMMENTS ON WESLEY JESSEN SUIT
                    REITERATES MOST RECENT GUIDANCE FOR 2001

LAKE FOREST, Calif., April 24, 2001 -- The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE: COO)
said today it will defend vigorously the lawsuit filed in California yesterday
by Wesley Jessen, a CIBA Vision Company, alleging infringement of patent rights
on colored contact lens technology. Cooper has thoroughly studied the various
patents associated with its cosmetic product and is confident that its color
lens does not infringe on the valid patent rights of any third party. Cooper
believes that CIBA's claims are without merit.

Consistent with recent guidance, Cooper estimates that earnings per share from
continuing operations for its second fiscal quarter ending April 30, 2001 will
range from 56 cents to 58 cents and between $2.36 and $2.42 for fiscal 2001.

Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the information included in this news release contains "forward-looking
statements" as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Forward-looking statements include all statements regarding anticipated growth
in our revenue, anticipated market conditions and results of operations. To
identify forward-looking statements look for words like "believes," "expects,"
"may," "will," "should," "seeks," "intends," "plans," "estimates" or
"anticipates" and similar words or phrases. Discussions of strategy, plans or
intentions often contain forward-looking statements. These, and all
forward-looking statements, necessarily depend on assumptions, data or methods
that may be incorrect or imprecise.










Events, among others, that could cause actual results and future actions to
differ materially from those described by or contemplated in forward-looking
statements include major changes in business conditions, a major disruption or
other production issues at our manufacturing facilities, new competitors or
technologies, the impact of an undetected virus on our computer systems,
acquisition integration delays or costs, foreign currency exchange exposure,
investments in research and development and other start-up projects, dilution to
earnings per share from acquisitions or issuing stock, regulatory issues,
significant environmental cleanup costs above those already accrued, litigation
costs including any related settlements, costs of business divestitures, the
requirement to provide for a significant liability or to write off a significant
asset, changes in accounting principles or estimates, and other factors
described in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including the
"Business" section in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended October
31, 2000. We caution investors not to rely on forward-looking statements. They
reflect our analysis only on their stated date or the date of this news release.
We disclaim any intent to update these forward-looking statements.

Internet Addresses
The Internet addresses in this release are for informational purposes only and
not intended for use as hyperlinks. Nothing in any of these addresses is a part
of this news release.

The Cooper Companies, Inc. and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture and market
specialty healthcare products. CooperVision, Inc., headquartered in Lake Forest,
Calif., with manufacturing facilities in Huntington Beach, Calif., Rochester,
N.Y., Toronto, Canada and Hamble, England, markets a broad range of contact
lenses for the vision care market. Its Web site is www.coopervision.com.
CooperSurgical, Inc., headquartered in Shelton, Conn., markets diagnostic
products, surgical instruments and accessories for the gynecological market. Its
Web site is www.coopersurgical.com. The Company's corporate offices are located
in Lake Forest and Pleasanton, Calif. A toll free interactive telephone system
at 1-800-334-1986 provides stock quotes, recent press releases and financial
data. The Cooper Companies Web address is www.coopercos.com.

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