Benjamin N. Cardozo: Sixty Years after His Appointment as New York's Chief Judge

Abstract

Sixty years after his appointment as Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals, Benjamin N. Cardozo's place in history as one of the country's most outstanding jurists and preeminent legal philosophers is secure. He is· widely acclaimed for being a successful practitioner, a brilliant legal scholar and a man who is ranked among the preeminent American judges, along with Marshall, Kent, Story and Holmes. He was a giant of his era who, while spending all but six years of his professional life in New York, exerted a powerful national influence upon his own times. He was praised not only for his knowledge of the law, but for his ability to convey his ideas in literate and lucid prose and for his dedication in applying them to each case no matter how mundane. He was respected for his gentleness, his kindness, his helpfulness and his consideration for others. Such is Cardozo's heritage that his analyses are still valued and his opinions and writings are still frequently quoted by judges and law review authors.