The Annotated Bobblehead Justice James Iredell

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James Iredell, 1790-1799

Early in his career, James Iredell was a customs collector for the British crown.

Iredell originally believed that the American colonies should be given the same rights as Scotland, and have their own legislative body under the Crown. In 1776, however, Iredell renounced his loyalty to the king and joined the Revolution.

Like John Blair, Iredell defended the concept of judicial review in a case he argued as a private attorney, Bayard v. Singleton (1787). The court agreed with his argument that acts of the North Carolina legislature could be found unconstitutional by a court of law. In Chisholm v. Georgia (1793), the noted case that allowed an individual to sue a state, Iredell wrote the only dissent.

Over his career, Iredell held many offices in North Carolina: Governor, North Carolina Superior Court Judge, Attorney General, and U.S. Senator.