The Fuller Court refers to the
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
from 1888 to 1910, when
Melville Fuller
Melville Weston Fuller (February 11, 1833 – July 4, 1910) was an American politician, attorney, and jurist who served as the eighth chief justice of the United States from 1888 until his death in 1910. Staunch conservatism marked his ...
served as the eighth
Chief Justice of the United States. Fuller succeeded
Morrison R. Waite as Chief Justice after the latter's death, and Fuller served as Chief Justice until his death, at which point Associate Justice
Edward Douglass White
Edward Douglass White Jr. (November 3, 1844 – May 19, 1921) was an American politician and jurist from Louisiana. White was a U.S. Supreme Court justice for 27 years, first as an associate justice from 1894 to 1910, then as the ninth chief ju ...
was nominated and confirmed as Fuller's replacement.
During the era of the Fuller Court, the
Judiciary Act of 1891
The Judiciary Act of 1891 ({{USStat, 26, 826), also known as the Evarts Act after its primary sponsor, Senator William M. Evarts, created the United States courts of appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the United S ...
was passed, easing the burden of the Supreme Court by creating the
United States courts of appeals
The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal judiciary. The courts of appeals are divided into 11 numbered circuits that cover geographic areas of the United States and hear appeals fr ...
. The Fuller Court was the first of three consecutive conservative courts, and established the
Lochner era
The ''Lochner'' era is a period in American legal history from 1897 to 1937 in which the Supreme Court of the United States is said to have made it a common practice "to strike down economic regulations adopted by a State based on the Court's o ...
.
Membership
The Fuller court began in October 1888, when the Senate confirmed President
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
's nomination of Melville Fuller as the successor to Chief Justice Waite. On Fuller's accession to the office, the Fuller Court consisted of
associate justices
Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...
:
Samuel Freeman Miller
Samuel Freeman Miller (April 5, 1816 – October 13, 1890) was an American lawyer and physician who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, U.S. Supreme ...
,
Stephen Johnson Field
Stephen Johnson Field (November 4, 1816 – April 9, 1899) was an American jurist. He was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from May 20, 1863, to December 1, 1897, the second longest tenure of any justice. Prior to this ap ...
,
Joseph P. Bradley
Joseph Philo Bradley (March 14, 1813 – January 22, 1892) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1870 to 1892. He was also a member of the Electoral Commission that decided t ...
,
John Marshall Harlan
John Marshall Harlan (June 1, 1833 – October 14, 1911) was an American lawyer and politician who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1877 until his death in 1911. He is often called "The Great Dissenter" due to his ...
,
Stanley Matthews
Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while stil ...
,
Horace Gray
Horace Gray (March 24, 1828 – September 15, 1902) was an American jurist who served on the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, and then on the United States Supreme Court, where he frequently interpreted the Constitution in ways that increa ...
,
Samuel Blatchford
Samuel M. Blatchford (March 9, 1820 – July 7, 1893) was an American attorney and judge. He was most notable for his service as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from April 3, 1882 until his death in 1893.
Early ...
, and
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II (September 17, 1825January 23, 1893) was an American politician, diplomat, and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Mississippi in both houses of Congress, served as the United States Sec ...
who had taken office earlier that year.
Matthews, Miller, and Bradley all died between 1889 and 1892, and President
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...
appointed
David Josiah Brewer
David Josiah Brewer (June 20, 1837 – March 28, 1910) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1890 to 1910. An appointee of President Benjamin Harrison, he supported states' righ ...
,
Henry Billings Brown
Henry Billings Brown (March 2, 1836 – September 4, 1913) was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1891 to 1906.
Although a respected lawyer and U.S. District Judge before ascending to the high court, Brown ...
, and
George Shiras, Jr. to replace them. Lamar and Blatchford both died in 1893, and President Harrison appointed
Howell Edmunds Jackson
Howell Edmunds Jackson (April 8, 1832 – August 8, 1895) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1893 until his death in 1895. His brief tenure on the ...
while President Cleveland appointed
Edward Douglass White
Edward Douglass White Jr. (November 3, 1844 – May 19, 1921) was an American politician and jurist from Louisiana. White was a U.S. Supreme Court justice for 27 years, first as an associate justice from 1894 to 1910, then as the ninth chief ju ...
as their replacements. White was Cleveland's third nominee to the seat that had been held by Blatchford, following the Senate's rejections of
William B. Hornblower and
Wheeler Hazard Peckham
Wheeler Hazard Peckham (January 1, 1833 – September 27, 1905) was an American lawyer from New York and an unsuccessful nominee to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Early life
Peckham was born in Albany, New York, on New Year's Day ...
. Jackson died in 1895, and was replaced by another Cleveland appointee,
Rufus Wheeler Peckham
Rufus W. Peckham (November 8, 1838 – October 24, 1909) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1895 to 1909, and is the most recent Democratic nominee approved by a Republican-majorit ...
, brother of Wheeler Peckham.
Field retired in 1897, and was replaced by Attorney General
Joseph McKenna
Joseph McKenna (August 10, 1843 – November 21, 1926) was an American politician who served in all three branches of the U.S. federal government, as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, as U.S. Attorney General and as an Associate J ...
, the lone appointment made by
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...
. Gray died in 1902 and Shiras retired in 1903; President
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
successfully nominated
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (March 8, 1841 – March 6, 1935) was an American jurist and legal scholar who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932.Holmes was Acting Chief Justice of the Un ...
and
William R. Day to replace them. Brown retired in 1906, and Roosevelt appointed
William Henry Moody
William Henry Moody (December 23, 1853 – July 2, 1917) was an American politician and jurist who held positions in all three branches of the Government of the United States. He represented parts of Essex County, Massachusetts in the Unit ...
to the court. Peckham died in 1909 and was succeeded by
Horace Harmon Lurton
Horace Harmon Lurton (February 26, 1844 – July 12, 1914) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and previously was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and of t ...
, an appointee of President
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
.
After Fuller's death, Fuller was replaced as Chief Justice by Associate Justice Edward Douglass White, who was elevated by President Taft. Between the death of Fuller and the elevation of White,
Charles Evans Hughes
Charles Evans Hughes Sr. (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American statesman, politician and jurist who served as the 11th Chief Justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the ...
joined the court as the successor to
David Josiah Brewer
David Josiah Brewer (June 20, 1837 – March 28, 1910) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1890 to 1910. An appointee of President Benjamin Harrison, he supported states' righ ...
, who died in 1910. Moody also retired in 1910, shortly before the elevation of White due to a prolonged illness.
Timeline
Other branches
Presidents during this court included
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
(two non-consecutive terms),
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...
,
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...
,
Teddy Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
, and
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
. Congresses during this court included
50th through the
61st United States Congresses.
Rulings of the Court
Major rulings of the Fuller Court include:
![The Fuller Court](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/The_Fuller_Court.jpg)
*''
Chae Chan Ping v. United States
''Chae Chan Ping v. United States'', 130 U.S. 581 (1889), better known as the ''Chinese Exclusion Case'', was a case decided by the US Supreme Court on May 13, 1889, that challenged the Scott Act of 1888, an addendum to the Chinese Exclusion Act ...
'' (1889): In a decision written by Justice Field, the court upheld the
Scott Act (an addendum to the
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplom ...
), holding that Congress has broad powers in setting
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
policy.
*''
Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co.'' (1895): In a 5–4 decision written by Chief Justice Fuller, the court struck down the Income Tax of 1894. The court ruled that the dividend, interest, and rent taxes levied by the act were unconstitutional because they constituted direct taxes that were not apportioned by state population. The court's ruling was effectively overturned by the
Sixteenth Amendment.
*''
United States v. E. C. Knight Co.'' (1895): In a decision written by Chief Justice Fuller, the court blocked the government's attempt to use the
Sherman Antitrust Act
The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce. It was passed by Congress and is named for Senator John Sherman, its principal author.
Th ...
to prevent the
American Sugar Refining Company
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
's acquisition of E.C. Knight Co. The court ruled that manufacturing is an intrastate activity, and thus could not be regulated by the federal government.
*''
Plessy v. Ferguson
''Plessy v. Ferguson'', 163 U.S. 537 (1896), was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in which the Court ruled that racial segregation laws did not violate the U.S. Constitution as long as the facilities for each race were equal in qualit ...
'' (1896): In a 7–1 decision written by Justice Brown, the court declared that
racial segregation
Racial segregation is the systematic separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Racial segregation can amount to the international crime of apartheid and a crimes against hum ...
does not violate the
Equal Protection Clause
The Equal Protection Clause is part of the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The clause, which took effect in 1868, provides "''nor shall any State ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal ...
so long as the "
separate but equal
Separate but equal was a legal doctrine in United States constitutional law, according to which racial segregation did not necessarily violate the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which nominally guaranteed "equal protec ...
" doctrine is followed. The decision allowed the continued existence of
Jim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...
. ''Plessy'' was overruled by ''
Brown v. Board of Education
''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segrega ...
'' in 1954, and the
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...
outlawed racial discrimination by the government.
*''
Allgeyer v. Louisiana
''Allgeyer v. Louisiana'', 165 U.S. 578 (1897), was a landmark case of the Supreme Court of the United States in which a unanimous bench struck down a Louisiana statute for violating an individual's liberty of contract. It was the first case in ...
'' (1897): In a decision written by Justice Peckham, the court established that the
Due Process Clause
In United States constitutional law, a Due Process Clause is found in both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, which prohibits arbitrary deprivation of "life, liberty, or property" by the government except as ...
created protections for
freedom of contract
Freedom of contract is the process in which individuals and groups form contracts without government restrictions. This is opposed to government regulations such as minimum-wage laws, competition laws, economic sanctions, restrictions on pri ...
. The case marked the beginning of the
''Lochner'' era, during which the court struck down numerous economic regulations.
*''
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Co. v. City of Chicago'' (1897): In a decision written by Justice Harlan, the court held that the Fourteenth Amendment had
incorporated the
Takings Clause
The Fifth Amendment (Amendment V) to the United States Constitution addresses criminal procedure and other aspects of the Constitution. It was ratified, along with nine other articles, in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights. The Fifth Amen ...
against state governments. This was the first case that incorporated a clause from the
Bill of Rights
A bill of rights, sometimes called a declaration of rights or a charter of rights, is a list of the most important rights to the citizens of a country. The purpose is to protect those rights against infringement from public officials and pri ...
, though further incorporation did not take place until the 1920s.
*''
United States v. Wong Kim Ark
''United States v. Wong Kim Ark'', 169 U.S. 649 (1898), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court which held that "a child born in the United States, of parents of Chinese descent, who, at the time of his birth, are subjects of the Empe ...
'' (1898): In a 7–2 decision written by Justice Gray, the court held that the
Citizenship Clause
The Citizenship Clause is the first sentence of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which was adopted on July 9, 1868, which states:
This clause reversed a portion of the ''Dred Scott v. Sandford'' decision, which had d ...
had established
birthright citizenship
''Jus soli'' ( , , ; meaning "right of soil"), commonly referred to as birthright citizenship, is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship.
''Jus soli'' was part of the English common law, in contras ...
even for those whose parents are not American citizens. Under ''
Elk v. Wilkins
''Elk v. Wilkins'', 112 U.S. 94 (1884), was a United States Supreme Court landmark 1884 decision respecting the citizenship status of Indians.
John Elk, a Winnebago Indian, was born on an Indian reservation within the territorial bounds of Unite ...
'' (1884), the decision did not apply to
Native Americans.
*The
Insular Cases
The Insular Cases are a series of opinions by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1901 about the status of U.S. territories acquired in the Spanish–American War. Some scholars also include cases regarding territorial status decided up unti ...
(1901): In a series of cases dealing with
territories
A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal.
In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...
acquired in the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
, the court held that the Constitution does not fully extend to
unincorporated territories
Territories of the United States are sub-national administrative divisions overseen by the federal government of the United States. The various American territories differ from the U.S. states and tribal reservations as they are not sover ...
such as
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
.
*''
Lone Wolf v. Hitchcock
''Lone Wolf v. Hitchcock'', 187 U.S. 553 (1903), was a United States Supreme Court case brought against the US government by the Kiowa chief Lone Wolf, who charged that Native American tribes under the Medicine Lodge Treaty had been defrauded of ...
'' (1903): In a decision written by Justice White, the court ruled that the federal government has the power to unilaterally breach treaties made with
Native American tribes. The decision allowed the federal government to take land from Native American tribes without providing compensation.
*''
Swift & Co. v. United States'' (1905): In a unanimous decision written by Justice Holmes, the court upheld the government's regulation of the "Beef Trust" under the Sherman Antitrust Act.
*''
Lochner v. New York
''Lochner v. New York'', 198 U.S. 45 (1905), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that a New York state law setting maximum working hours for bakers violated the bakers' right to freedom of contract under t ...
'' (1905): In a 5–4 decision written by Justice Peckham, the court held that a state setting a maximum workweek of 60 hours for bakeries violated freedom of contract. The ''Lochner'' Era would continue until ''
West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish
''West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish'', 300 U.S. 379 (1937), was a decision by the United States Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of state minimum wage legislation. The court's decision overturned an earlier holding in ''Adkins v. Child ...
'' (1937).
*''
Hodges v. United States'' (1906): In a 7–2 decision written by Justice Brewer, the court held that the
Thirteenth Amendment does not authorize Congress to protect labor rights from racially motivated attacks such as
whitecapping
Whitecapping was a movement among farmers that occurred specifically in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was originally a ritualized form of extralegal actions to enforce community standards, appropriate behavior ...
. ''
Jones v. Alfred H. Mayer Co.
''Jones v. Alfred H. Mayer Co.'', 392 U.S. 409 (1968), is a landmark United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate ...
'' (1968) later overturned the case.
*''
Adair v. United States'' (1908): In a decision written by Justice Harlan, the court struck down part of the
Erdman Act The Erdman Act of 1898 was a United States federal law regulating railroad labor disputes. The law provided arbitration for disputes between the interstate railroads and their workers organized into unions.
Major provisions
The most significant p ...
and declared that bans on "
yellow-dog contract
A yellow-dog contract (a yellow-dog clause of a contract, also known as an ironclad oath) is an agreement between an employer and an employee in which the employee agrees, as a condition of employment, not to be a member of a labor union. In the ...
s" (which forbid employees from joining
unions) are unconstitutional. The court held that such bans unconstitutionally infringed on freedom of contract. The decision was largely superseded by the
Norris–La Guardia Act of 1932.
*''
Loewe v. Lawlor
''Loewe v. Lawlor'', 208 U.S. 274 (1908), also referred to as the Danbury Hatters' Case, is a United States Supreme Court case in United States labor law concerning the application of antitrust laws to labor unions. The Court's decision effectivel ...
'' (1908): In a unanimous decision written by Chief Justice Fuller, the court held that the
Sherman Antitrust Act
The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce. It was passed by Congress and is named for Senator John Sherman, its principal author.
Th ...
prevents the use of
secondary boycotts by unions. The
Norris–La Guardia Act effectively overturned this decision.
*''
Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus
''Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus'', 210 U.S. 339 (1908), was a United States Supreme Court decision concerning the scope of rights accorded owners of a copyright versus owners of a particular copy of a copyrighted work. This was a case of first impr ...
'' (1908): In a unanimous decision written by Justice Day, the court established the
first-sale doctrine
The first-sale doctrine (also sometimes referred to as the "right of first sale" or the "first sale rule") is an American legal concept that limits the rights of an intellectual property owner to control resale of products embodying its intellec ...
.
*''
Ex parte Young'' (1908): In a decision written by Justice Peckham, the court held that lawsuits against state officials in federal court do not violate
sovereign immunity
Sovereign immunity, or crown immunity, is a legal doctrine whereby a sovereign or state cannot commit a legal wrong and is immune from civil suit or criminal prosecution, strictly speaking in modern texts in its own courts. A similar, stronger ...
.
Judicial philosophy
In contrast with the Waite Court,
the Fuller Court used the Due Process Clause to strike down several economic regulations in defense of a
laissez faire
''Laissez-faire'' ( ; from french: laissez faire , ) is an economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies) deriving from special interest groups. A ...
economy.
The court struck down several federal regulatory laws and sought to maintain the autonomy of the states, but it also struck down state laws that it saw as impediments to interstate commerce. The Fuller Court ruled more favorably to the government in other cases, most notably ''Plessy'', and granted the government wide latitude in administering colonial territories. The court also declined to extend due process protections into the sphere of criminal procedure
Criminal procedure is the adjudication process of the criminal law. While criminal procedure differs dramatically by jurisdiction, the process generally begins with a formal criminal charge with the person on trial either being free on bail or ...
. Like many other courts prior to 1941, the Fuller Court had strong consensual norms, which helped to keep the number of dissents to a minimum. No clear ideological blocs emerged during Fuller's tenure, but Justices Holmes, Day, Gray, and Brown tended to favor upholding laws, and Justices Shiras, Harlan, White, and Peckham were the most willing to overrule state legislatures. Justice Harlan was notable for his many dissents, earning him the moniker of the "Great Dissenter." The ideological homogeneity was a product of an era in which Republican presidents dominated, and the lone Democratic president (Cleveland) shared the pro-business views of most Republicans. Fuller himself was regarded as a talented administrator generally in agreement with the court's philosophy, but not a dominant intellectual force.[Ely, 31]
References
Further reading
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{{US1stAmendment Freedom of Speech Clause Fuller Court case law
1890s in the United States
United States Supreme Court history by court