Robert Morris Montgomery (May 12, 1849 – June 27, 1920) was a justice of the

Michigan Supreme Court The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the state ...

and a

Presiding Judge A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...

of the

United States Court of Customs Appeals The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes. History The CCPA began as the United States Court of Custom ...

Education and career

Born on May 12, 1849, in

Eaton Rapids Eaton Rapids is a city in Eaton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,214 at the 2010 census. The city is located in the south of Eaton Rapids Township, on the boundary with Hamlin Township, though it is politically indep ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, Montgomery

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

in 1870. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

Seventh Michigan Cavalry in 1864, during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. He entered private practice in Pentwater, Michigan from 1871 to 1873. He was an assistant assessor of internal revenue for the State of Michigan in 1873. He was prosecutor for Oceana County, Michigan from 1873 to 1877. He returned to private practice in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

, Michigan in 1877. He was an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

for the Western District of Michigan from 1877 to 1881. He was a Judge of the Michigan Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit from 1881 to 1888. He resumed private practice in Grand Rapids from 1888 to 1891. He was a justice of the

from 1892 to 1910, serving as chief justice from 1900 to 1901, and in 1910.

Federal judicial service

Montgomery was nominated by 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 ...

on March 9, 1910, to the

(later the

United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes. History The CCPA began as the United States Court of Customs ...

), to the new Presiding Judge seat authorized by 36 Stat. 11. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on March 30, 1910, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on June 27, 1920, due to his death in Eaton Rapids.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Robert Morris 1849 births 1920 deaths Chief Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court Judges of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals Michigan lawyers Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court United States Article I federal judges appointed by William Howard Taft 20th-century American judges United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from Eaton Rapids, Michigan Assistant United States Attorneys