IIT Chicago Kent College of Law - Transcript Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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P c 1 TPAN?6lll19T t 'Che Lawyer N opportunity was afforded me to study law at night by the Chicago College of Law, now the Chicago Kent College of Law, and I entered the Class of '89, being otherwise occupied during the day. This was the situation of many of the students in the class at that time, and, as a result, we were able to meet the necessary law study requirements for admission to practice law in our State. ' Untiring service was rendered to the students by judges Joseph M. Bailey and Thomas A. Moran in the class-room located in the Appellate Court. The students of that time owe to these instructors their everlasting gratitude for this service. Judge Bailey, late of our Supreme Court, was a courtly gentleman, patient to a degree that must have been trying, in assisting the students to comprehend questions of law before the class. The clear explanations made by Judge Moran, then of the Appellate Court, when involved questions of law were considered, made it easy for the students to understand. Judge Moran was a keen and well-grounded lawyer. His reputation was such that he had the confidence of the bench and bar of that time, and was beloved by the students. I shall never forget the talk made by Judge Moran to the graduating class. He impressed the class with the ethics of the profession, and, as lawyers, always to have in mind the position and responsibility that lawyers have in the com- munity, and at no time, whether for a client or otherwise, to countenance the doing of a discreditable act that would reflect on the law profession. He also strongly advised the students to continue the study of law, so as properly to qualify them to meet the ever-changing conditions. He called our attention to the bad impression made on clients having business with a lawyer, in finding the lawyer reading the daily papers in his office. It would be far better to read law with profit, than to create a bad impression on clients by reading the daily papers during business hours. I shall never forget this talk. It was, and has been an inspiration to me, and it certainly has guided me in my profession. Vile all remember the early struggles of our late President, Abraham Lincoln, and it is most appropriate to recall his public utterances, his thoughts about the responsibilities of a lawyer. In a lecture to students studying law, he had this to say: There is a vague popular belief that lawyers are necessarily dis- honest. I say vague, because when we consider to what extent confidence and honors are reposed in and conferred upon lawyers by the people, it appears improbable that this impression of dishonesty is very distinct and vivid. Yet the impression is common, almost universal. Let no young man, choosing the law for a calling, for a moment yield to the popular belief-resolve to be honest at all events. And if, in your own judgment, .you cannot be an honest lawyer, resolve to be honest without being a lawyer. Choose some other occupation, rather than one in the choosing of which you do, in advance, consent to be a knave. Frequently criticisms are made that are most unjust. Lawyers as a class appreciate the responsibilities that are theirs in the administration of justice. If lawyers fail us, justice would be but a mockery. But, happily, the bench and bar, in the main, have played an important part in the history of our country. As an illustration, john Marshall, the in- 98 i i Q 1926 IN I A IV JN

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! terpreter of our Constitution, in the opinion of many, rendered great service to the Union. ' In the early history of our country, after the ratification by the several States of the Federal Constitution, the task of expounding the Constitution during this most critical period rested with the United States Supreme Court. At the time of the appointment of John Marshall as Chief justice of this Court, it was considered that the Supreme Court was one of the departments that had failed in its purpose. john Jay, the first Chief justice, had resigned and declined a reappointment on the ground that he left the bench perfectly convinced that the court would never acquire proper weight and dignity, its organization being fatally defective. Marshall, after leaving the Colonial Army, was admitted to the bar after a brief course of study. VVe find him in litigation of great importance. An examination of the reports of the time show his leadership at the bar in his State-Virginia. He was a member of the Virginia Legislature. Our Presi- dent, George Washington, offered him the Attorney-Generalship, and, on the retirement of james Monroe as Minister to France also offered him that posi- tion, but he graciously declined for the reason that his situation at the bar appeared to him to be more independent and no less honorable than any other. He was a member of the National House of Representatives, and was Secretary of State in the Cabinet of President Adams. During a short incumbency he was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice became practically the mouthpiece of the court. Marshall wrote the majority of the opinions involving the interpretation of the Consti- tution. It was given to him to preside, and he was called upon to write the opinions in four cases of importance, which are now generally considered to be essential to the preservation of the United States as a Federal State. It was decided during his incumbency as Judge, that the Court would disregard any Act of Congress, and also any Act of the Legislature of one of the several States, which the Court thought contrary to the Federal Consti- tution 5 also that Congress could lawfully pass an Act which permitted a person, who was convicted in a State court, to appeal to the Supreme Court, if he alleged that the Act on which he was convicted conflicted with the Federal Constitution. It was also determined that Congress, in the exercise of delegated powers, had a wide latitude in the choice of means. And, lastly, he held that the Govermnent had control over the means by which interstate and foreign com- merce is carried on. In all, Justice Marshall decided forty-four cases involving constitutional questions. - His was not the work of a statesman, but that of a Judge. In his opinions he adhered to the Constitution as written. In his interpretation of the Consti- tution we are impressed by his love for the Union. The constructions given to the questions involved clarified the Constitution, and the work of the Framers of the Constitution was saved. ' The heritage that the lawyers of the past have left to the lawyers of the coming generations must be, and will be, an inspiration to them to carry on the work, having in mind the grave responsibility that a lawyer has in the proper administration of justice. I'ION. OSCAR Hamer.. 99 1926 .,... .1 Nf A f f? 1 3