Stephen Sewall (December 14, 1702 – September 10, 1760) was a judge in

colonial Massachusetts Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French colonial architecture * Spanish colonial architecture Automobiles * Col ...

. Born in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

, he was the son of Stephen Sewall, the clerk of court at the Salem witchcraft trials, and a nephew of Chief Justice

Samuel Sewall Samuel Sewall (; March 28, 1652 – January 1, 1730) was a judge, businessman, and printer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, best known for his involvement in the Salem witch trials, for which he later apologized, and his essay ''The Selling ...

, who presided at the witchcraft trials. He was the uncle of lawyer

Jonathan Sewall Jonathan Sewall (August 24, 1729 – September 27, 1796) was the last Colonial attorney general of Massachusetts. He was born in Boston on August 24, 1729, to Jonathan Sewall Sr. and Mary (Payne) Sewall. Sewall's father was an unsucces ...

and of the poet, lawyer and patriot, Jonathan Mitchell Sewall of Portsmouth, NH. He attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, graduating in 1721. Although never formally trained as a lawyer or admitted to the bar, he was appointed first as an associate justice, and then as Chief Justice of the

Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously fun ...

, the highest court in the colony. He also served on the

Massachusetts Governor's Council The Massachusetts Governor's Council (also known as the Executive Council) is a governmental body that provides advice and consent in certain matterssuch as judicial nominations, pardons, and commutationsto the Governor of Massachusetts. Council ...

, which was then the upper house of the

Massachusetts General Court The Massachusetts General Court, formally the General Court of Massachusetts, is the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts located in the state capital of Boston. Th ...

. He was generally respected by both friends (the "court party") and foes (the "popular party") of royal government. Sewall's death in Boston in 1760 was followed by controversy.

James Otis, Jr. James Otis Jr. (February 5, 1725 – May 23, 1783) was an American lawyer, politician, and activist who was early supporter of patriotic causes in Province of Massachusetts Bay at the beginning of the American Revolution. Otis was a fervent oppo ...

believed that his father,

James Otis, Sr. James Otis Sr. (1702–1778) was a prominent lawyer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. His sons James Otis Jr. and Samuel Allyne Otis also rose to prominence, as did his daughter Mercy Otis Warren. He was often called "Colonel James" becaus ...

, had been promised the office of chief justice, but Governor Francis Bernard appointed Crown supporter Thomas Hutchinson instead, creating a political rift that would have important implications in the development of the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. While Sewall had expressed doubts about the legality of

writs of assistance In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrant (legal), Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and ''certiorari'' are commo ...

, which were controversial general search warrants, Hutchinson authorized them—over the objections of Otis—in the famous "writs of assistance case" of 1761.

References

*Wroth, L. Kinvin. "Sewall, Stephen". ''

American National Biography Online The ''American National Biography'' (ANB) is a 24-volume biographical encyclopedia set that contains about 17,400 entries and 20 million words, first published in 1999 by Oxford University Press under the auspices of the American Council of Lea ...

'', Feb. 2000. 1702 births 1760 deaths Justices of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature Members of the colonial Massachusetts Governor's Council People from colonial Boston Lawyers from Salem, Massachusetts Harvard University alumni 18th-century Massachusetts politicians {{Massachusetts-state-judge-stub