The Annotated Bobblehead Justice Benjamin R. Curtis
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Benjamin R. Curtis, 1851-1857
As a member of the Massachusetts legislature from 1849-51, Benjamin Curtis was responsible for writing legislation that became the Massachusetts Practice Act of 1851, reforming state judicial procedure.
Curtis's speech at Faneuil Hall, included below, demonstrates his respect for the law. Despite his disagreement and disgust with the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, he argued that it was the law and should be upheld. In the infamous Dred Scott case (Scott v. Sandford), Curtis dissented and subsequently resigned from the court. He likewise critiqued President Lincoln's power to declare martial law in his pamphlet, Executive Power (1862). A printed response, The Power of the Commander-in-Chief to Declare Martial Law (1862), rejected Curtis's arguments and suggested that if Curtis were a true patriot, he would have addressed the President privately and directly.
After resigning from the Court in 1857, Curtis returned to private practice. He argued more than fifty cases before the Supreme Court and made the opening argument in defense of President Andrew Johnson at his impeachment trial.
1. Proceedings of the Constitutional Meeting at Faneuil Hall: November 26, 1850. Boston, 1850. 
2. The Case of Dred Scott in the United States Supreme Court: The Full Opinions of Chief Justice Taney and Justice Curtis...New York, 1860. (Horace Greeley's edition) 
3. Massachusetts Acts and Resolves Passed by the General Court of Massachusetts in the Year 1851...Boston, 1851. 
4. Charles M. Ellis and Benjamin R. Curtis. The Power of the Commander-in-Chief to Declare Martial Law, and Decree Emancipation: as Shown from B.R. Curtis. Boston, 1862. 
5. Report of the Decision of the Supreme Court of the United States ... In the Case of Dred Scott versus John F.A. Sandford. Washington, 1857. (from Howard's Reports) 
6. Proceedings in the Trial of Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, Before the United States Senate ... Washington, 1868.
