Paul A. Freund
Encyclopedia
Paul A. Freund was an American
jurist
and law professor. He taught most of his life at Harvard Law School
and is known for his writings on the United States Constitution
and the Supreme Court of the United States
.
. He was a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis
(1928) and Harvard Law School
(1931, 1932). He served as president of the editorial board of the Harvard Law Review
and wrote his 1931 thesis on "The Effect of State Statutes on Federal Equity Jurisdiction."
Associate Justice Louis Brandeis
. He later called this "the most important year in my life. Brandeis set superhuman standards and lived as if each day were his last on earth and every minute counted. He was a moralist. He saw moral issues where others saw expediency."
Freund next served at the United States Treasury, the Reconstruction Finance Corporation
, and the Office of the Solicitor General, where he worked on Supreme Court briefs for major New Deal constitutional cases, arguing for a relatively flexible interpretation of the Constitution in economic and social matters.
He joined the faculty of Harvard Law School
as lecturer in 1939 and was named professor of law in 1940. His career there of teaching and scholarship was interrupted only by a return to the Solicitor General's office during World War II and a year as visiting professor at Cambridge University. He was named Charles Stebbins Fairchild Professor in 1950, Royall Professor of Law in 1957, and Carl M. Loeb University Professor in 1958. Freund retired from Harvard Law School in 1976.
He was named by President Eisenhower to the position of editor-in-chief of a projected multi-volume history of the Supreme Court and therefore declined an offer from President-elect John F. Kennedy
to become Solicitor General of the United States that many believed would have led to his appointment to the Supreme Court. Nevertheless, President Kennedy twice considered naming Freund to the Supreme Court in 1962 for positions ultimately filled by Deputy Attorney General Byron R. White and Arthur Goldberg
.
Freund often cited Lord Acton's dictum, "When you perceive a truth, look for the balancing truth," writing that the great issues that come before the Supreme Court "reflect not so much a clash of right and wrong as a conflict between right and right: effective law enforcement and the integrity of the accused; public order and freedom of speech; freedom of worship and abstention from aiding as well as impeding religion. "The courts," he wrote, "are the substations that transform the high-tension charge of the philosophers into the reduced voltage of a serviceable current."
called Freund "the dominant figure of his time in the field of constitutional law."
and the Massachusetts Historical Society
and a fellow and past president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
. He received more than twenty honorary degrees. In 1975 the National Endowment for the Humanities
selected Freund for the Jefferson Lecture
, the U.S. federal government's highest honor for achievement in the humanities
. Freund's lecture was entitled "Liberty: The Great Disorder of Speech," and was later published in The American Scholar
. In October 2006, an exhibit entitled "Balancing the Truth: Paul Freund 1908-1992" at the Harvard Law School Library marked the opening of the Paul A. Freund papers.
Tributes to Paul Freund's legendary kindliness are legion. Dean Vorenberg once said: "I never knew anyone more considerate than Paul. He was incapable of meanness." Dean Erwin Griswold
said: "His tastes were always simple. There was no show or splurge about him. No one ever questioned his motivation or his word. I never heard him speak unkindly about anyone. He never raised his voice, though his speech, in the classroom and in private conversation, was resonant, deliberate, and clearly understood. Yet he was always shy and modest, though in no sense a recluse." John Davison, a Harvard Law School graduate, said: "To those who knew Paul Freund, the personal aspects of the man shine radiantly through: the ambling gait, the soft but sparkling eyes, the gentle voice and warm smile, the occasional arched eyebrow, reflecting often skepticism but never dismay, or perhaps the head thrown back with both brows raised in laughter. He was humble, gentle, quick of wit, and never shrill. Always accessible to those who sought the dependable wisdom of his counsel, he was the truest and most loyal of friends."
During the 1970s, Freund lived in an 11th-floor apartment on the Charles River
overlooking Harvard Stadium
, where he regularly attended Crimson football games.
Freund died of cancer
of the sinus
on February 5, 1992, at the age of 83. His papers reside in the Harvard Law School's Langdell Hall
library.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
and law professor. He taught most of his life at Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
and is known for his writings on the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
and the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
.
Early life, education, and family
Freund was born in St. Louis, MissouriMissouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. He was a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...
(1928) and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
(1931, 1932). He served as president of the editorial board of the Harvard Law Review
Harvard Law Review
The Harvard Law Review is a journal of legal scholarship published by an independent student group at Harvard Law School.-Overview:According to the 2008 Journal Citation Reports, the Review is the most cited law review and has the second-highest impact factor in the category "law" after the...
and wrote his 1931 thesis on "The Effect of State Statutes on Federal Equity Jurisdiction."
Career
In 1932-1933, Freund served as law clerk for U.S. Supreme CourtSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
Associate Justice Louis Brandeis
Louis Brandeis
Louis Dembitz Brandeis ; November 13, 1856 – October 5, 1941) was an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States from 1916 to 1939.He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to Jewish immigrant parents who raised him in a secular mode...
. He later called this "the most important year in my life. Brandeis set superhuman standards and lived as if each day were his last on earth and every minute counted. He was a moralist. He saw moral issues where others saw expediency."
Freund next served at the United States Treasury, the Reconstruction Finance Corporation
Reconstruction Finance Corporation
The Reconstruction Finance Corporation was an independent agency of the United States government, established and chartered by the US Congress in 1932, Act of January 22, 1932, c. 8, 47 Stat. 5, during the administration of President Herbert Hoover. It was modeled after the War Finance Corporation...
, and the Office of the Solicitor General, where he worked on Supreme Court briefs for major New Deal constitutional cases, arguing for a relatively flexible interpretation of the Constitution in economic and social matters.
He joined the faculty of Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
as lecturer in 1939 and was named professor of law in 1940. His career there of teaching and scholarship was interrupted only by a return to the Solicitor General's office during World War II and a year as visiting professor at Cambridge University. He was named Charles Stebbins Fairchild Professor in 1950, Royall Professor of Law in 1957, and Carl M. Loeb University Professor in 1958. Freund retired from Harvard Law School in 1976.
He was named by President Eisenhower to the position of editor-in-chief of a projected multi-volume history of the Supreme Court and therefore declined an offer from President-elect John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
to become Solicitor General of the United States that many believed would have led to his appointment to the Supreme Court. Nevertheless, President Kennedy twice considered naming Freund to the Supreme Court in 1962 for positions ultimately filled by Deputy Attorney General Byron R. White and Arthur Goldberg
Arthur Goldberg
Arthur Joseph Goldberg was an American statesman and jurist who served as the U.S. Secretary of Labor, Supreme Court Justice and Ambassador to the United Nations.-Early life:...
.
Writings
Most of Freund's writings were the result of invitations to speak. They have been collected, principally, in three volumes: On Understanding the Supreme Court (1949), The Supreme Court of the United States: Its Business, Purposes and Performance (1961), and On Law and Justice (1968).Philosophy
Freund believed that the mission of law was "to impose a measure of order upon the disorder of experience without stifling diversity, spontaneity, and disarray."Freund often cited Lord Acton's dictum, "When you perceive a truth, look for the balancing truth," writing that the great issues that come before the Supreme Court "reflect not so much a clash of right and wrong as a conflict between right and right: effective law enforcement and the integrity of the accused; public order and freedom of speech; freedom of worship and abstention from aiding as well as impeding religion. "The courts," he wrote, "are the substations that transform the high-tension charge of the philosophers into the reduced voltage of a serviceable current."
Influence
When he died, former Harvard Law School Dean James VorenbergJames Vorenberg
James Vorenberg, born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1927, was the Roscoe Pound Professor of Law and ninth Dean of Harvard Law School, former Watergate Associate Special Prosecutor, and first chair of the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission...
called Freund "the dominant figure of his time in the field of constitutional law."
Recognition
Paul Freund was a member of the American Philosophical SocietyAmerican Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
and the Massachusetts Historical Society
Massachusetts Historical Society
The Massachusetts Historical Society is a major historical archive specializing in early American, Massachusetts, and New England history...
and a fellow and past president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
. He received more than twenty honorary degrees. In 1975 the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
selected Freund for the Jefferson Lecture
Jefferson Lecture
The Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities is an honorary lecture series established in 1972 by the National Endowment for the Humanities . According to the NEH, the Lecture is "the highest honor the federal government confers for distinguished intellectual achievement in the humanities."-History of...
, the U.S. federal government's highest honor for achievement in the humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
. Freund's lecture was entitled "Liberty: The Great Disorder of Speech," and was later published in The American Scholar
The American Scholar (magazine)
The American Scholar is the literary quarterly of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, founded in 1932. The magazine has won fourteen National Magazine Awards from the American Society of Magazine Editors from 1999 to present, including awards for General Excellence...
. In October 2006, an exhibit entitled "Balancing the Truth: Paul Freund 1908-1992" at the Harvard Law School Library marked the opening of the Paul A. Freund papers.
Personal life
Paul Freund's parents were Charles Freund and the former Hulda Arenson.Tributes to Paul Freund's legendary kindliness are legion. Dean Vorenberg once said: "I never knew anyone more considerate than Paul. He was incapable of meanness." Dean Erwin Griswold
Erwin Griswold
Erwin Nathaniel Griswold was an appellate attorney who argued many cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. Griswold served as Solicitor General of the United States under Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard M. Nixon. He also served as Dean of Harvard Law School for 21 years. Several times he...
said: "His tastes were always simple. There was no show or splurge about him. No one ever questioned his motivation or his word. I never heard him speak unkindly about anyone. He never raised his voice, though his speech, in the classroom and in private conversation, was resonant, deliberate, and clearly understood. Yet he was always shy and modest, though in no sense a recluse." John Davison, a Harvard Law School graduate, said: "To those who knew Paul Freund, the personal aspects of the man shine radiantly through: the ambling gait, the soft but sparkling eyes, the gentle voice and warm smile, the occasional arched eyebrow, reflecting often skepticism but never dismay, or perhaps the head thrown back with both brows raised in laughter. He was humble, gentle, quick of wit, and never shrill. Always accessible to those who sought the dependable wisdom of his counsel, he was the truest and most loyal of friends."
During the 1970s, Freund lived in an 11th-floor apartment on the Charles River
Charles River
The Charles River is an long river that flows in an overall northeasterly direction in eastern Massachusetts, USA. From its source in Hopkinton, the river travels through 22 cities and towns until reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Boston...
overlooking Harvard Stadium
Harvard Stadium
Harvard Stadium is a horseshoe-shaped football stadium in the Allston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. Built in 1903, the stadium seats 30,323. The stadium seated up to 57,166 in the past, as permanent steel stands were installed in the north end of the stadium in 1929...
, where he regularly attended Crimson football games.
Freund died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
of the sinus
Sinus (anatomy)
Sinus is Latin for "bay", "pocket", "curve", or "bosom". In anatomy, the term is used in various contexts.A sinus is a sack or cavity in any organ or tissue, or an abnormal cavity or passage caused by the destruction of tissue...
on February 5, 1992, at the age of 83. His papers reside in the Harvard Law School's Langdell Hall
Langdell Hall
Langdell Hall is the largest building on the campus of Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is home to the school's library, the largest academic law library in the world, and is named for pioneering law school dean Christopher Columbus Langdell...
library.
See also
- John F. Kennedy Supreme Court candidatesJohn F. Kennedy Supreme Court candidatesAlthough he was president for less than three years, John F. Kennedy appointed two men to the Supreme Court of the United States: Byron White and Arthur Goldberg...
Brief Mention about Freund
- Goldstein, Joel K. "The art of judicial selection: Lessons for Obama from Brandeis and Freund", The St. Louis Beacon, May 19, 2009