Home > William J. Brennan

Brennan was the second of eight children. His parents, William Brennan and Agnes (McDermott) were Irish immigrants. They met in the United States, although both were originally from County Roscommon in Ireland. His father had little education; he worked as a metal polisher. However, he rose to a position of leadership, serving as the Commissioner of Public Safety for the city of Newark from 1917 to 1930.

Brennan attended public shools in Newark, New Jersey, graduating from Barringer High School. He then attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated with a degree in Economics in 1928.

Brennan completed his law degree at Harvard in 1931 and entered private practice in his home state of New Jersey. He practiced labor lawLabor law or labour law is the body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which address the relationship between and among employers, employees, and labor organizations, often dealing with issues of public law. It is distinguished between employ.

He entered the ArmyThe Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. As of fiscal year 2002 (FY02), it consisted of 480,000 soldiers on active duty and 555,000 in reserve (350,000 in Army National G as a MajorFor non-military meanings, see major (disambiguation). In the US Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and the British Army, a major is a commissioned officer superior to a captain and inferior to a lieutenant colonel. The equivalent rank in the US Navy is Lieute in March 1942, and left as a ColonelColonel ( Ger: Oberst is a military rank, usually the highest below general grades, and just above Lieutenant Colonel. The word is pronounced similarly to "kernel". In the US military, a colonel in the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps is equivalent to a c in 1945. He did legal work for the ordnance division. In 19491949 is the common year starting on Saturday. see link for calendar) Events January-February January 4 RMS Caronia of the Cunard Line departs Southampton for New York on her maiden voyage January 4 February 22 Series of winter storms in Nebraska, Wyoming,, Brennan was appointed to the Superior Court (a Trial courtA trial court or court of first instance is the court in which most civil or criminal cases begin. Not all cases are heard in trial courts; some cases may begin in inferior limited jurisdiction bodies such as the case of the jurisdiction of an administrat) by New Jersey Governor Alfred E. Driscoll. In 1951, Driscoll appointed him to the New Jersey Supreme Court .

He was nominated for the U.S. Supreme Court by Dwight Eisenhower in 1956, shortly before the 1956 presidential election. Presidential advisers thought the appointment of Catholic Democrat from the northeast would woo critical voters in the upcoming election for Eisenhower, a Republican. He was confirmed by the United States Senate with only Senator Joseph McCarthy dissenting. He filled the seat vacated by Sherman Minton. He held the post until his retirement on July 20, 1990 for health reasons. Brennan then taught at Georgetown University Law Center until 1994.

With 1,360 opinions, he is second only to William O. Douglas in number of opinions written while a Supreme Court justice. An outspoken liberal throughout his career, he joined the Warren Court's dramatic expansion of individual rights, particularly with respect to voting, criminal proceedings and the free speech and establishment clauses of the First Amendment. On the more moderate Burger Court, he was a staunch opponent of the death penalty, and a supporter of abortion rights, and joined the majority in landmark rulings on both issues. With the accession of William Rehnquist to the position of Chief Justice, Brennan found himself more frequently isolated, often joined in his opinions only by Thurgood Marshall. Brennan's conservative detractors, while acknowleding his legal acumen, thought him the embodiment of the worst features of judicial activism.

He married Marjorie Leonard when he was 21. They had met in high school. They eventually had three children: William, Nancy and Hugh. Marjorie died in 1982. In 1985, he married Mary Fowler, who had served as his secretary for 26 years. He retired in 1990 and was succeeded on the Court by Justice David Souter.