John Biggs Jr. (October 6, 1895 – April 15, 1979) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Early life and education

Biggs was born in Wilmington, Delaware, on October 6, 1895, to John and Rachel Valentine (Massey) Biggs. His father was the

Attorney General of Delaware The attorney general of Delaware is a constitutional officer of the U.S. state of Delaware, and is the chief law officer and the head of the State Department of Justice. On January 1, 2019, Kathy Jennings was sworn in as the 46th attorney general o ...

, since April 4, 1887, and the Chairman of the Constitutional Convention which framed the 1897 Constitution of Delaware, Biggs was also the grandson of

Benjamin T. Biggs Benjamin Thomas Biggs (October 1, 1821 – December 25, 1893) was an American politician from Middletown in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a veteran of the Mexican–American War and a member of the Democratic Party, who served as U.S. Re ...

who served two terms in Congress. Biggs was a private in the United States Army Ordnance and Tank Corps during World War I from 1917 to 1918. He received a Bachelor of Letters from Princeton University in 1918, and a Bachelor of Laws from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

in 1922. At Princeton Biggs was an editor of the Princeton ''Tiger'' and a Triangle Club collaborator. While at Princeton, Biggs shared a room and became friends with writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, and later helped the author find a home in Delaware. It is reported that Biggs often retrieved Fitzgerald from jail, after Fitzgerald had bouts of drinking and fighting in Wilmington, Delaware. After Fitzgerald died in 1940, he was a mourner at his funeral and was the executor of the estate and the guardian of Fitzgerald's daughter

Scottie The Scottish Terrier ( gd, Abhag Albannach; also known as the Aberdeen Terrier), popularly called the Scottie, is a breed of dog. Initially one of the highland breeds of terrier that were grouped under the name of ''Skye Terrier'', it is one o ...

, for whom he negotiated the contract rights of ''The Great Gatsby.''

Career

Biggs was in private practice in Wilmington from 1922 to 1937, serving as a civilian aide to the Secretary of War in Wilmington from 1923 to 1937, and as a

Referee in Bankruptcy A Referee in Bankruptcy or Bankruptcy Referee was a federal official with quasi-judicial powers, appointed by a United States district court to administer bankruptcy proceedings, prior to 1979. The office was first created by the Bankruptcy Act o ...

for the United States District Court for the District of Delaware from 1924 to 1932. He was the chairman of the Democratic State Convention in 1928, and he gave the nominating speech for President Roosevelt in 1932. He was narrowly defeated to become the

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

candidate for the

in the 1932 and 1936 elections. Biggs had been a member of the bar since 1928, and was also a member of the Delaware State Bar Association, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the

Society of Colonial Wars The Society of Colonial Wars is a hereditary society composed of men who trace their descents from forebears who, in military, naval, or civil positions of high trust and responsibility, by acts or counsel, assisted in the establishment, defense, ...

, the Sons of the American Revolution, and the

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Federal judicial service

On February 3, 1937, Biggs was nominated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to a new seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit created by 49 Stat. 1903. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 10, 1937, and received his commission on February 16, 1937. He served a member of the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges (now the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...

) from 1939 to 1948. He served as Chief Judge and as a member of the

from 1948 to 1965, assuming senior status on October 30, 1965, and serving in that capacity until his death on April 15, 1979, in

Wooddale, Delaware Wooddale is an unincorporated community in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. Wooddale is located along the Red Clay Creek and Rolling Mill Road, west of Wilmington. History The community was home to the Wooddale Paper Mills and iron ...

. During his time on the bench Biggs handled more than 4,000 cases, and wrote about 1,500 opinions which were rarely reversed by the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. Important cases he was known for were he maintained that public schools were discriminatory and ordered the complete desegregation of Delaware's public schools and that the reading of the Bible in the schools were contrary to the Constitution.

Recognition

Biggs was commended by Chief Justice Burger who stated that: "If there were some judicial counterpart of the Congressional Medal of Honor, you would lead my list for one of the first to be given." This belief was echoed by

Chief Justice Warren Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presided over a major shift in American Constitution o ...

who called him a, "...one-man Ministry of Justice." During his lifetime, Biggs was elected to both the American Philosophical Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Published works

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Biggs, John Jr. 1895 births 1979 deaths Princeton University alumni Harvard Law School alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit United States court of appeals judges appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt 20th-century American judges People from Wilmington, Delaware United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War I Members of the American Philosophical Society