There Have Been Three Justice Jacksons

Howell, Robert, and Ketanji.

In A Republic, Justice Gorsuch recounts a story told by his former boss, Justice White:

THESE DAYS I SOMETIMES find myself thinking back a quarter century to a day when, as a law clerk, I was walking with my boss, Justice Byron White, along the ground-floor hallway of the Supreme Court. As we passed portrait after portrait of former justices, he asked me how many of them I could name. As much as I wanted to impress the boss, I admitted the answer was about half. The justice surprised me when he said, "Me too. We'll all be forgotten soon enough."

Justice White was quite right.

During a recent event, Justice Kavanaugh referred to Justice Robert Jackson, and added, "or as we like to refer to him, the first Justice Jackson." Eek.

Justice Howell Edmund Jackson

Everyone knows Justice Robert Houghwout Jackson, who served from 1941 through 1954. But most people do not know Justice Howell Edmunds Jackson. He was appointed by President Benjamin Harrison, and served from 1893 through 1895. Forgotten. KBJ is the third Justice Jackson.

Shortly before KBJ was appointed, I listed the other Justices who shared a last name:

1. Chief Justice John Marshall (1801-1835) and Justice Thurgood Marshall (1967-1991)
2. Justice John Rutledge (1790-1791) and Justice Wiley Rutledge (1943-1949)
3. Justice Thomas Johnson (1792-1793) and Justice William Johnson (1804-1834)
4. Justice Samuel Chase (1796-1811) and Chief Justice Salmon Chase (1864-1873)
5. Justice John Marshall Harlan I (1877-1911) and Justice John Marshall Harlan II (1955-1971)
6. Justice Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar (1888-1893) and Justice Joseph Rucker Lamar (1911-1916)—(they were cousins)
7. Justice Edward Douglas White (1894-1910) and Justice Byron White (1962-1993)
8. Justice John Hessin Clarke (1916-1922) and Justice Tom C. Clark (1945-1967)—(close enough on the spelling)
9. Justice Owen Josephus Roberts (1930-1945) and Chief Justice John C. Roberts (2005-any day now)

 

Comments

[Noscitur a sociis]

Justice John C. Roberts (2005-any day now)

I’m not proud of it but I will admit that I laughed.

[Vryedni]

Credit where due, every once in a great while he does say something that's not-unintentionally funny.

[JoeFromtheBronx]

The Kavanaugh event is a lecture by Prof. Gerard N. Magliocca, who wrote an interesting book on Justice Bushrod Washington.

[David Nieporent]

The first Justice Bushrod.

[Dan Schiavetta]

The fact that so many Justices used to clerk for other Justices, is not good. I’ve heard of it umpteen times and made into umpteen good stories. Gorsuch clerked for White, and Rehnquist clerked for Robert Jackson. It’s still not good.

[Area Man]

My understanding is that it’s a fairly recent phenomenon. It seems like they all do now, but it was pretty rare before. Byron White was the first former clerk to become a Justice.

Then again, that could be because the concept of a clerk was very different back when. I once read a (fairly comical and not very well written) memoir by John Knox, a former law clerk to Justice McReynolds. He described what a clerkship was like during his time—essentially a modern clerkship, a legal secretary, a regular secretary, and a servant all rolled into one. And there was typically only one per Justice at a time, and they sometimes lasted several years.

[The Margrave of Azilia]

If it was McReynolds, his clerk probably had to prepare the justice's coffee at just the right temperature, or get the coffee thrown in his face.

[Frank Drackman]

OK Dean Wormer, we get it, you don't think it's good.

[not guilty]

John Roberts clerked for William Rehnquist. The late John Paul Stevens clerked for Wiley Rutledge. Elena Kagan clerked for Thurgood Marshall. Brett Kavanaugh clerked for Anthony Kennedy, Amy Coney Bear It clerked for Antonin Scalia.

[Frank Drackman]

So insensitive that Judge Kagrungi Jackson Brown insists on keeping the name of a Slave Owning Genocidal President,

[Frank Drackman]

I think Jackie, Tito, or Germaine would have been as good as Kagrungi.

[CJColucci]

Stay classy, Frank.

[Intelligent Mr Toad]

You forgot this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEaxFvHuW4k

[Commenter_XY]

I appreciated the SCOTUS trivia. So ten last names have been repeated at least once. Ten times. I learn new things here all the time.

[ReaderY]

I think it’s still hotter than a pepper sprout around here.

Look, big talkin’ man, cool down a bit. Then go talkin’ Jackson.

And don’t go mess around.

[CJColucci]

The Justices Harlan not only shared a last name, they were grandfather and grandson. Given that John Marshall was a large slaveholder, it is not beyond possibility that the Justices Marshall were distantly related as well. No similar possibility for the Justices Jackson.

[The Margrave of Azilia]

"No similar possibility for the Justices Jackson."

In those days, such things were not always meticulously documented.

[Letters_Triumverate]

> Chief Justice John C. Roberts (2005-any day now)

About as classy as your ten-dollar suits, Josh. This is the sort of pettiness I'd expect from Calabresi or some random Twitter user with a Ruth Bader avatar.