ASSOCIATE JUSTICE LOUIS D. BRANDEIS - AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED - HFSID 285196
Price: $1,250.00
LOUIS BRANDEIS
Signed autograph letter, probably to fellow Supreme Court Justice (and ally)
Harlan Fiske Stone, regarding assistance received from Harvard Law professor and
future Justice Felix Frankfurter. Historical research on Brandeis' relationship
with Frankfurter would provoke a major controversy 50 years later.
Autograph Letter signed: "L. D. B.", 1 page, 6x9½. Boston,
Massachusetts, 1930 September 11. On note paper of the Hotel Bellevue,
Boston, to "Stone" [probably fellow Supreme Court Justice Harlan Fiske
Stone]. In part (because Brandeis' handwriting is very difficult to
decipher]: "[illegible phrase] !! Received [?] & F.F. has
case. He says he has written to you. Also handed Felix the Evers [?]
letter with H. L. I. interview memo. Felix says he will write you about this.
There are many dark clouds. But I think much reason for hope. Best wishes"
[signature] We plan to leave for Washington this evening." Louis
Dembitz Brandeis (1856-1941) was called "the people's lawyer" for his opposition
to monopolies and his effective briefs for laws promoting workplace health and
safety. In 1916, President Wilson appointed him to the Supreme Court, where he
served until 1939. Brandeis, the first Jewish Justice, was known for his
articulate briefs supporting free speech and the right to privacy. In the
early 1930s he often joined Justices Benjamin Cardozo and Harlan Fiske Stone
in opposition to the conservative majority on the Hughes Court. Brandeis
worked closely with Harvard Law professor Felix Frankfurter (1862-1965),
who would be appointed by Franklin Roosevelt as Brandeis' successor on the
Court. In 1982, historian Bruce Allen Murphy - author of several books on
the inside politics of the Supreme Court - published a controversial one,
The Brandeis/Frankfurter Connection: the Secret Political Activities of Two
Supreme Court Justices, alleging that Brandeis, restrained as a Supreme
Court Justice from open policy advocacy, secretly funded Frankfurter to speak
for him. The New York Times editorialized on the subject, agreeing with
Murphy that this was improper, but many others leaped to the defense of Brandeis
and Frankfurter, finding nothing unseemly in their cooperation. Brandeis and
Frankfurter had been close personal friends for many years. Surprisingly,
Frankfurter, known for his liberal politics in earlier years, became one of the
Supreme Court's more conservative voices, believing that the Warren Court's
wide-ranging rulings violated the principle of "judicial restraint." Notch at
upper edge. Punch hole at upper edge. 2 horizontal fold creases. Corners lightly
creased. Ink note at top right corner crossed out. Otherwise, fine
condition.
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