Soldier, Scholar, Sage: The Life and Legacies of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

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Oliver Wendell Holmes’ name alone should be cause for awe.

A member of the U.S. Supreme Court for almost thirty years (from 1902 to 1932), he was more than a storied jurist or one of the most colorful personalities to ever emerge from our legal annals.

During his distinguished career as a common law judge, prior to his federal service he spent two decades as a judge on the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. Holmes championed civil liberties, the permissibility of state regulation of the market, and a deference to the will of the people as reflected in their elected legislatures.

Holmes’ impact goes well beyond his legal stances. His succinctly written opinions read like literature, and their epigrammatic qualities still retain their resonance. An opinion by Holmes reflects a distinctive and charismatic personality that, a century later, still speaks to us.

He transcends settled notions of what a judge ought to be. Holmes was simply superb, but he was by no means perfect. His cynicism bordered on the misanthropic, and there are dark patches clouding his legacy.

In spite of the volumes written about him, Holmes as a historical figure is difficult to pin down. He remains something of an enigma. A hero to civil libertarians, he often abhorred the very ideas being espoused by those whose constitutional rights he was recognizing. He had no qualm voting to uphold statutes he personally disagreed with. Conservatives have turned to Holmes on account of his judicial restraint.

In an earlier era, Holmes was embraced as a nearly universal paragon. As was bound to happen, revisionists have come forward to point out that he also had feet of clay. In many ways, he has become the Rosetta Stone of constitutional adjudication, as diverse interests wish to either claim his mantle or diminish the value of his historic contribution.

Join us for a fascinating look at Holmes’ life, work, and indeed his lasting legacy.

FACULTY

Rudolph Carmenaty, Deputy Commissioner, Nassau County Department of Social Services