Salt of the Earth, Conscience of the Court: The Story of Justice Wiley Rutledge [Hardcover]

John M. Ferren (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2004

The Kentucky-born son of a Baptist preacher, with an early tendency toward racial prejudice, Supreme Court Justice Wiley Rutledge (1894-1949) became one of the Court's leading liberal activists and an early supporter of racial equality, free speech, and church-state separation. Drawing on more than 160 interviews, John M. Ferren provides a valuable analysis of Rutledge's life and judicial decisionmaking and offers the most comprehensive explanation to date for the Supreme Court nominations of Rutledge, Felix Frankfurter, and William O. Douglas.

Rutledge was known for his compassion and fairness. He opposed discrimination based on gender and poverty and pressed for expanded rights to counsel, due process, and federal review of state criminal convictions. During his brief tenure on the Court (he died following a stroke at age fifty-five), he contributed significantly to enhancing civil liberties and the rights of naturalized citizens and criminal defendants, became the Court's most coherent expositor of the commerce clause, and dissented powerfully from military commission convictions of Japanese generals after World War II. Through an examination of Rutledge's life, Ferren highlights the development of American common law and legal education, the growth of the legal profession and related institutions, and the evolution of the American court system, including the politics of judicial selection.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"[A] much-needed and heretofore missing biography of Wiley Rutledge, one of the nine members of the so-called 'Roosevelt Court'. . . . A fascinating narrative of national judicial politics in the 1940s. Highly recommended."
— Choice

"Ferren's beautifully written book tells this story in a way that will delight and intrigue lawyers and non-lawyers alike.
(Willard Wirtz, teacher, lawyer, former U.S. Secretary of Labor)"

"In this brilliantly researched, fascinating biography, John Ferren gives Wiley Rutledge the full justice too long denied him.
(William E. Leuchtenburg, author of The Supreme Court Reborn)"

"It is not only a model judicial biography, it is a good read.
(Melvin I. Urofsky, Virginia Commonwealth University)"

From the Inside Flap

Justice Wiley Rutledge (1894-1949), a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, was FDR's last appointee to the Supreme Court, where he was a leading liberal voice on the bench. In this readable and first full biography of Rutledge, Judge Ferren addresses both his life and judicial decision-making, his principled approach to liberal judicial activism, his stand on the first Japanese war crimes trial, and other civil libertarian matters where Rutledge made his mark.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 576 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press (September 8, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807828661
• ISBN-13: 978-0807828663
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,292,947 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Biography of a Neglected Justice, December 14, 2004

By 

Ronald H. Clark (WASHINGTON, DC USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Salt of the Earth, Conscience of the Court: The Story of Justice Wiley Rutledge (Hardcover)

At long last, thanks to Judge Ferren, we have a complete biography of Justice Wiley Rutledge. While Rutledge is not much remembered today, and his tenure on the Supreme Court was relatively brief (1943-49), his significance merits more attention than he has received. Judge Ferren employs a completely different approach than the only other biography of the Justice, Harper's "Justice Rutledge and the Bright Constellation" (1965). Harper focused almost exclusively upon Justice Rutledge's decisions. Judge Ferren does not get Rutledge on the court until page 222 (out of 548). While one might conclude that perhaps too much detail occupies the pre-Court discussion, I can't think of another judicial biography that so effectively affords one a feeling of becoming so intimately familiar with its subject. This initial section is particularly effective in discussing the political maneuvering that accompanied filling several vacancies on the Court, including Rutledge's. The book's central focus, Rutledge on the Court, is very well developed. Judge Ferren not only brings his own insight into the judicial process to his analysis, but discusses some unique aspects as well, such as Rutledge's habit of asking trusted law faculty members their opinions on issues before the court, and Rutledge's exhaustive preparation for writing opinions. The book also adds to our understanding of the personal interplay in that most bombastic of Supreme Courts, that chaired by Chief Justice Stone. Interspersed with the discussion of Court cases is additional biographical material relating to the Justice. Finally, the underlying research is simply awesome--truly a labor of love. While it is a very long book, if you are interested in Justice Rutledge or his period on the Court, it makes for indispensable reading.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Author & subject both "salt of the earth", January 17, 2005

By 

Marilee C. Unruh - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Salt of the Earth, Conscience of the Court: The Story of Justice Wiley Rutledge (Hardcover)

As the folks at Amazon could tell you, I read many novels and very few biographies. I am a corporate lawyer, and have not practiced constitutional law since I clerked for Judge Ferren, the author of this Rutledge bio, more than 20 years ago. I picked up this book because of my connection to the author, but I stuck with it for other reasons. First, the writing is elegant and precise; it is a very readable book. The book tells the story of a good man (and very good lawyer/dean/judge) who is concerned with doing his job right, respected others, was respected by others in return, and achieved great things -- what an encouraging, uncynical story! (Not dissimilar to the author's own story, a fact that creates an extra richness of texture in this book, especially in its descriptions of the life of an appellate judge.) In addition, the constitutional issues that the Court dealt with during WWII and the immediate post-war era remain fascinating -- and very timely. These issues are made understandable to nonexperts without being oversimplified. I learned a lot, and greatly enjoyed the process.

1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Little Prejudiced...., April 10, 2007

By 

Cisco Jones (United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Salt of the Earth, Conscience of the Court: The Story of Justice Wiley Rutledge (Hardcover)

For anyone with an interest in law or history this is a great read. Justice Rutledge was my grandfather's first cousin -- thus the initial reason I bought the book. Unfortunately the dust jacket was crinkled upon arrival so I'll have to send it back for a new copy.