James A. Emmert (September 26, 1895 – April 14, 1974) was an

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, and

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who served as

Indiana Attorney General The Indiana Attorney General is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state, State of Indiana in the United States. Attorneys General are chosen by a statewide general election to serve for a four-year term. The forty-fourth and Attorney General is ...

from 1943 to 1947 and as a justice of the

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from 1947 to 1959.

Biography

Early life and education

Emmert was born in

Laurel, Indiana Laurel is a town in Laurel Township, Franklin County, Indiana, United States. The population was 512 at the 2010 census. History Laurel was platted in 1836 by James Conwell, a native of Maryland. Conwell had first intended to name his settlemen ...

to Clinton B. Emmert and Alice Emmert (née Patterson).Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

Indiana Law Review Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is the law school of Indiana University Indianapolis, a public research university in Indianapolis, Indiana. The school has been based in Lawrence W. Inlow Hall in Indianapolis ...

'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page
Emmert attended and graduated from Clarksburg High School in Clarksburg and the

Tennessee Military Institute Tennessee Military Institute (TMI) was a military academy in Sweetwater, Tennessee. Sweetwater Military College The school was founded as Sweetwater Military College in 1874 by J. Lynn Bachman, a Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a hist ...

in Sweetwater. Emmert served in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, working at a

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military

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for twenty-two months. Emmert attended

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

in Evanston,

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as an undergraduate. He got his legal education and degree from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

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. While at Harvard, Emmert was a research student working under

Felix Frankfurter Felix Frankfurter (November 15, 1882 – February 22, 1965) was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1939 until 1962, advocating judicial restraint. Born in Vienna, Frankfurter im ...

, later an

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of the

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. Frankfurter said that Emmert was "the best research student eever had at Harvard."

Judicial service and later life

In 1923, after receiving his degree, Emmert opened a law practice in

Shelbyville, Indiana Shelbyville is a city in Addison Township, Shelby County, in the U.S. state of Indiana and is the county seat. The population was 20,067 as of the 2020 census. History In 1818, the land that would become Shelbyville was ceded to the Un ...

. In 1925, Emmert was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Shelbyville. In 1928, he was elected judge of the Shelby County

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. He was re-elected to the position in 1934, serving until 1940, when he returned to private practice in partnership with M.O. Sullivan and Ralph Adams. Emmert, a Republican, was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1940 Indiana gubernatorial election. That same year, amid the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Emmert assisted in the foundation of the Indiana State Guard, serving as the first commanding officer of the First Battalion, Fourth Regiment. In 1942, Emmert was elected

and was later re-elected to the position in 1944. Emmert began living in his office in the

Indiana Statehouse The Indiana Statehouse is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Indiana. It houses the Indiana General Assembly, the office of the Governor of Indiana, the Indiana Supreme Court, and other state officials. The Statehouse is located i ...

in order to avoid having to travel back to Shelbyville. In 1946, Emmert was elected to the

, succeeding Justice Frank Richman. He left the bench in 1959, succeeded by Justice Amos W. Jackson. After leaving the court, Emmert returned to Shelbyville and began practicing law in partnership with James M. Robinson.

Personal life and death

In 1929, Emmert married Bernice L. Foster in

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

. They had two daughters. Emmert was described as an expert rifleman and a life member of the

National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

. The Shelbyville branch of the

Fraternal Order of Police The National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is a fraternal organization consisting of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. It reports a membership of over 355,000 members organized in 2,100 local chapters (lodges), state lodge ...

named a local pistol range in honor of Emmert. Emmert was a member of the

Indiana State Bar Association The Indiana State Bar Association (ISBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of Indiana. Unlike some state bar associations, in which membership is mandatory, ISBA membership is not required of lawyers licensed to practice in Indiana. The ...

and the Pioneer Society of Indiana. He was also a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

and a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, being a member of the Greensburg

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

for fifty years. Emmert died in Shelbyville in 1974.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Emmert, James 1895 births 1974 deaths People from Franklin County, Indiana Northwestern University alumni Harvard Law School alumni Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court American judges Indiana Republicans Indiana attorneys general