Lloyd Paul Stryker (5 June 1885 – June 1955) was a 20th-century American attorney known as a "flamboyant criminal lawyer" and "perhaps the most celebrated criminal lawyer since

Clarence Darrow Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the 19th century for high-profile representations of trade union causes, and in the 20th century for several criminal matters, including the ...

", best known as chief of defense in the first criminal trial of

Alger Hiss Alger Hiss (November 11, 1904 – November 15, 1996) was an American government official who was accused of espionage in 1948 for the Soviet Union in the 1930s. The statute of limitations had expired for espionage, but he was convicted of perjur ...

for perjury in 1949.

Background

He was born on June 5, 1885, in Chicago to Melancthon Woolsey Stryker (a Presbyterian minister) and Elizabeth Goss. He had five siblings. In 1906 (or 1907), he received a BA from

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York, Clinton, New York. It was established as the Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and received its c ...

, where his father was president. In 1909, he received an MA in law from

New York Law School New York Law School (NYLS) is a private, American law school in the Tribeca neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City. The third oldest law school in New York City, its history predates its official founding in 1891 by Theodore William Dwight, T ...

. In 1933, he received a Doctorate of Humane Letters.

Career

In 1909, he was admitted to the New York bar. From 1910 to 1922, he was assistant district attorney in New York County. In 1914 (or 1912), he received the Republican nomination for judge of the New York City Court. He then formed the law firm of Whiteside and Stryker. He interrupted his career to serve in

World War I 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 ...

successively as second lieutenant, first lieutenant and captain in field artillery for the United States Army. In 1928, Stryker declined a chair in criminal law at Harvard University. In 1929, President

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...

nominated him for a federal judgeship, but before his confirmation, President

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...

came into office and did not renominate him. In 1930, Stryker renounced the Republican Party and went into practice by himself.

Hiss case

By 1947, ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' magazine had published an article about him: "Trial Lawyer: Lloyd Paul Stryker is Archetype of Vanishing Courtroom Virtuoso". The author, Fred Rodell, wrote, "His close friend, the late

Alexander Woollcott Alexander Humphreys Woollcott (January 19, 1887 – January 23, 1943) was an American drama critic for The New York Times and the New York Herald, critic and commentator for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, a member of the Algonquin Round Table, an ...

, once described Stryker as a 'curious mixture of

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; ; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide insight into the politics and cu ...

, the late Abe Levy,

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

, William Sylvanus Baxter Jr., and the bull of Bashan." Most famously, Stryker was lead defense counsel in the first of two criminal cases for perjury against

(both held in New York City). Yale Law School's biographical dictionary states, "His skillful, ferocious, and relentless cross-examination of

Whittaker Chambers Whittaker Chambers (born Jay Vivian Chambers; April 1, 1901 – July 9, 1961) was an American writer and intelligence agent. After early years as a Communist Party member (1925) and Soviet spy (1932–1938), he defected from the Soviet u ...

... led to a hung jury." Irving Younger has called Stryker "the then-ablest criminal lawyer in practice" and "the preeminent criminal lawyer of his generation".

Later years

Stryker's practice dropped off after the Hiss Case.

Personal life and death

Stryker's father was president of Hamilton College and his sister, Alida Livingston Stryker (1881–1951), married Elihu Root Jr., son of the Hamilton alumnus and trustee

Elihu Root Elihu Root (; February 15, 1845February 7, 1937) was an American lawyer, Republican Party (United States), Republican politician, and statesman who served as the 41st United States Secretary of War under presidents William McKinley and Theodor ...

. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, Stryker's use made popular the word "

boondoggle A boondoggle is a project that is considered a waste of both time and money, yet is often continued due to extraneous policy or political motivations. Etymology "Boondoggle" was the name of the newspaper of the Roosevelt Troop of the Boy Sco ...

". Stryker married Katherine Traux; they had one daughter. He was an

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

. He died in June 1955.

Works

According to Younger, "Stryker was a very able writer. His work on the art of advocacy has, I think, never been surpassed and rarely equalled." Books: * ''Andrew Johnson—A Study in Courage'' (1929)
''Courts and Doctors''
(with a Preface by Charles G. Heyd, 1932) * ''For The Defense'' (1947) (biography of Thomas Erskine) * ''The Art of Advocacy'' (1954) Articles: * "Department of Amplification", ''New Yorker'' (December 25, 1937) * "Successful Trial Tactics, by A.S. Cutler", ''Indiana Law Journal'' (Summer 1949)

References

External sources

Getty Images
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stryker, Lloyd 20th-century American lawyers 1885 births 1955 deaths Woolsey family