Robert Braucher
Encyclopedia
Robert Braucher was an Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
from January 18, 1971, until his death.
in 1916. He was graduated from Haverford College
with high honors in 1936 and from Harvard Law School
in 1939, magna cum laude and salutatorian
of his class. He served as editor of the Harvard Law Review
, was a finalist in the Ames moot court competition, and winner of the Beale Prize for the best paper on the conflict of laws. From 1939 to 1941 he practiced law in New York City. He entered the United States Army Air Force during World War II
and, while in service, received the Distinguished Flying Cross
and the Air Medal
.
arranged a better offer from the Harvard Law School
. Braucher began teaching at Harvard in January 1946, and was a professor at Harvard Law School
from 1949 to 1971, specializing in contract
s and business law. While at Harvard, he took a leave of absence and served as Fulbright lecturer at Chuo and Tokyo Universities in 1959. He taught as a visiting professor at the University of Minnesota Law School
during the academic year 1968-1969.
He was active in the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
, serving as Commissioner from Massachusetts from 1954 to 1971, and as vice president of the Conference from 1967 to 1970. He was also active in sections of the American Bar Association
. He was chairman of the National Commission on Consumer Finance from 1969 to 1971 and of the National Institute for Consumer Justice. He led the team that wrote a Model Anti-Discrimination Act, and he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in favor of the Equal Rights Amendment
.
and served in that capacity until the time of his death. While serving on the court, he continued to teach part-time at Harvard Law School and at Boston University Law School.
Justice Braucher's first opinion, published on March 5, 1971, concerned an action in contract involving the applicability of the Uniform Commercial Code
and the rights of a judgment creditor. His final opinion, published on August 7, 1981, concerned the consequences of a wrongful dishonor of checks, also under the Uniform Commercial Code.
Noted decisions include Corning Glass Works v. Ann & Hope, Inc. of Danvers, overruling General Elec. Co. v. Kimball Jewelers, Inc., and holding that the nonsigner provision of the Fair Trade Law was an unconstitutional delegation of legislative power to private parties; and Green v. Commissioner of Corps. & Taxation, rejecting the concept that a woman's domicil is always that of her husband; Hendrickson v. Sears, holding that the statute of limitations did not commence to run in favor of an attorney until the client discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the attorney's error; Hershkoff v. Board of Registrars of Voters of Worcester, concerning the domicil of students for voting purposes; Carpenter v. Suffolk Franklin Sav. Bank, a purported class action concerning mortgagors' asserted rights to savings banks' earnings on real estate tax payments; and Secretary of the Commonwealth v. City Clerk of Lowell, holding that, absent fraud, people may select and change their names freely.
Stating that "judge-made rules of law are to be tailored to justice rather than to abstract logic", he once urged in dissent that rules concerning the admission of hearsay
evidence should be greatly simplified so as to admit hearsay "unless the trial judge in his or her sound discretion thinks it fair to exclude it". In his dissent in Commonwealth v. Manning, referring to "a legal tradition, established by men" and in effect urging a "rape shield" rule as part of the common law, he wrote forcefully against the use of reputation evidence to impeach the testimony of female victims of sex crimes.
.
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere.-History:...
from January 18, 1971, until his death.
Early years
Braucher was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1916. He was graduated from Haverford College
Haverford College
Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia...
with high honors in 1936 and from 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...
in 1939, magna cum laude and salutatorian
Salutatorian
Salutatorian is an academic title given, in the United States and Canada, to the second highest graduate of the entire graduating class of a specific discipline. Only the valedictorian is ranked higher. This honor is traditionally based on grade point average and number of credits taken, but...
of his class. He served as editor 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...
, was a finalist in the Ames moot court competition, and winner of the Beale Prize for the best paper on the conflict of laws. From 1939 to 1941 he practiced law in New York City. He entered the United States Army Air Force during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and, while in service, received the Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a medal awarded to any officer or enlisted member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes himself or herself in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight, subsequent to November 11, 1918." The...
and the Air Medal
Air Medal
The Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States. The award was created in 1942, and is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.-Criteria:...
.
Teaching career
Towards the end of his military service in 1945, Braucher was approached to teach at Columbia University Law School, but Harvard professor Erwin GriswoldErwin 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...
arranged a better offer from the 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...
. Braucher began teaching at Harvard in January 1946, and was a professor 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...
from 1949 to 1971, specializing in contract
Contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
s and business law. While at Harvard, he took a leave of absence and served as Fulbright lecturer at Chuo and Tokyo Universities in 1959. He taught as a visiting professor at the University of Minnesota Law School
University of Minnesota Law School
The University of Minnesota Law School, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, is a professional school of the University of Minnesota. The school offers a Juris Doctor , Masters of Law for Foreign Lawyers, and joint degrees with J.D./M.B.A., J.D./M.P.A, J.D./M.A., J.D./M.S., J.D./Ph.D.,...
during the academic year 1968-1969.
He was active in the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws is a non-profit, unincorporated association commonly referred to as the U.S. Uniform Law Commission. It consists of commissioners appointed by each state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the United States...
, serving as Commissioner from Massachusetts from 1954 to 1971, and as vice president of the Conference from 1967 to 1970. He was also active in sections of the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
. He was chairman of the National Commission on Consumer Finance from 1969 to 1971 and of the National Institute for Consumer Justice. He led the team that wrote a Model Anti-Discrimination Act, and he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in favor of the Equal Rights Amendment
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution. The ERA was originally written by Alice Paul and, in 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time...
.
Judicial career
In 1971, he was appointed Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court by Governor Francis W. SargentFrancis W. Sargent
Francis William Sargent was the 64th Governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. Born in 1915 in Hamilton, Massachusetts, he was known for his sharp wit and self-deprecating manner...
and served in that capacity until the time of his death. While serving on the court, he continued to teach part-time at Harvard Law School and at Boston University Law School.
Justice Braucher's first opinion, published on March 5, 1971, concerned an action in contract involving the applicability of the Uniform Commercial Code
Uniform Commercial Code
The Uniform Commercial Code , first published in 1952, is one of a number of uniform acts that have been promulgated in conjunction with efforts to harmonize the law of sales and other commercial transactions in all 50 states within the United States of America.The goal of harmonizing state law is...
and the rights of a judgment creditor. His final opinion, published on August 7, 1981, concerned the consequences of a wrongful dishonor of checks, also under the Uniform Commercial Code.
Noted decisions include Corning Glass Works v. Ann & Hope, Inc. of Danvers, overruling General Elec. Co. v. Kimball Jewelers, Inc., and holding that the nonsigner provision of the Fair Trade Law was an unconstitutional delegation of legislative power to private parties; and Green v. Commissioner of Corps. & Taxation, rejecting the concept that a woman's domicil is always that of her husband; Hendrickson v. Sears, holding that the statute of limitations did not commence to run in favor of an attorney until the client discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the attorney's error; Hershkoff v. Board of Registrars of Voters of Worcester, concerning the domicil of students for voting purposes; Carpenter v. Suffolk Franklin Sav. Bank, a purported class action concerning mortgagors' asserted rights to savings banks' earnings on real estate tax payments; and Secretary of the Commonwealth v. City Clerk of Lowell, holding that, absent fraud, people may select and change their names freely.
Stating that "judge-made rules of law are to be tailored to justice rather than to abstract logic", he once urged in dissent that rules concerning the admission of hearsay
Hearsay
Hearsay is information gathered by one person from another person concerning some event, condition, or thing of which the first person had no direct experience. When submitted as evidence, such statements are called hearsay evidence. As a legal term, "hearsay" can also have the narrower meaning of...
evidence should be greatly simplified so as to admit hearsay "unless the trial judge in his or her sound discretion thinks it fair to exclude it". In his dissent in Commonwealth v. Manning, referring to "a legal tradition, established by men" and in effect urging a "rape shield" rule as part of the common law, he wrote forcefully against the use of reputation evidence to impeach the testimony of female victims of sex crimes.
External links
Note
Material on this page has been adapted from Robert Braucher, Memorial, 387 Mass. 1223 (1982), a special sitting of the Supreme Judicial Court held at Boston on September 21, 1982. Because this information has been printed as a court proceeding in an official Reporter of Decisions, it is in the public domainPublic domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
.