Alexis Caswell Angell (April 26, 1857 – December 24, 1932), frequently known as A. C. Angell, was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (in case citations, E.D. Mich.) is the United States district court, federal district court with jurisdiction over the eastern half of the Lower Peninsula of the State of M ...

Education and career

Born on April 26, 1857, in

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in some religions * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

, Angell received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1878 from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

read law Reading law was the primary 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 un ...

in 1879, and received a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

in 1880 from the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparati ...

. He entered private practice in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

from 1880 to 1911. He was a Professor of Law at the University of Michigan from 1893 to 1898, lecturing one half of each year.

Federal judicial service

Angell was nominated by President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

on February 25, 1911, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Henry Harrison Swan. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on March 2, 1911, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on June 1, 1912, due to his resignation.

Death

Following his resignation from the federal bench, Angell returned to private practice in Detroit from 1912 to 1932. He died on December 24, 1932.

Family

Angell was the son of

James Burrill Angell James Burrill Angell (January 7, 1829 – April 1, 1916) was an American educator and diplomat. He is best known for being the longest-serving president of the University of Michigan, from 1871 to 1909. He represented the transition from smal ...

and Sarah Swope Caswell, and was named for his maternal grandfather,

Alexis Caswell Alexis Caswell (January 29, 1799 – January 8, 1877) was an American educator, born in Taunton, Massachusetts. He graduated Brown University in 1822, and entered the Baptist ministry. Career Caswell was professor of mathematics and natural phi ...

, later President of

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

. Angell was 14 when his family moved to

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

when his father was appointed President of the University of Michigan. In 1880, he married Fanny Cary Cooley, daughter of Law Professor Thomas McIntyre Cooley.

Other activities

Angell edited the second edition of Cooley's Torts (1888), the sixth edition of his Constitutional Limitations (1890), and the second edition of his Principles of Constitutional Law (1891).

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Angell, Alexis C. 1857 births 1932 deaths Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan United States district court judges appointed by William Howard Taft Lawyers from Providence, Rhode Island University of Michigan Law School alumni University of Michigan faculty United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law