Thurman Wesley Arnold (June 2, 1891 – November 7, 1969) was an American
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
best known for his
trust-busting
Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust ...
campaign as
Assistant Attorney General in charge of the
Antitrust
Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...
Division in President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
's
Department of Justice from 1938 to 1943. He later served as a
Judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
on the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Before coming to Washington in 1938, Arnold was the mayor of
Laramie,
Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
and a professor at
Yale Law School
Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...
, where he took part in the
legal realism movement and published two books: ''The Symbols of Government'' (1935) and ''The Folklore of Capitalism'' (1937). He also published ''The Bottlenecks of Business'' (1940).
Early life and education
Thurman was born in the frontier ranch town of
Laramie,
Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
,
which grew to be a small city and the location of the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming, United States. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, ...
. He was the son of Annie (Brockway) and Constantine Peter Arnold. He began his university studies at
Wabash College, but transferred to
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
, earning his
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree in 1911.
He earned his
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 ...
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 ...
in 1914.
Early career
Arnold served 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 ...
, rising to the rank of
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
(Field Artillery) and worked briefly in
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
before returning to Laramie, where he was a member of the
Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming State Legislature. There are 62 Representatives in the House, representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts across the Wyoming, st ...
in 1921 and then
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 ...
from 1923 to 1924.
He developed a reputation as a maverick lawyer.
He was a Lecturer at the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming, United States. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, ...
from 1921 to 1926. He was Dean of the
West Virginia University College of Law from 1927 to 1930. He was a visiting professor at
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
from 1930 to 1931, and then professor of law at the same institution from 1931 to 1938.
Federal government
Arnold was a special assistant to the general counsel of the
Agricultural Adjustment Administration
The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was a United States federal law of the New Deal era designed to boost agricultural prices by reducing surpluses. The government bought livestock for slaughter and paid farmers subsidies not to plant on part ...
in 1933. He was an Assistant Attorney General of the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...
from 1938 to 1943. As chief competition lawyer for the
United States Government
The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States.
The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...
, Arnold launched numerous studies to support the
antitrust
Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...
efforts in the late 1930s.
He targeted the
American Medical Association
The American Medical Association (AMA) is an American professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. This medical association was founded in 1847 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was 271,660 ...
in their anti-competitive efforts against
health plans.
The Roosevelt administration later de-emphasized antitrust enforcement, for the stated purpose of allowing corporations to concentrate on contributing to victory in
World War II
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 ...
.
Federal judicial service
Arnold was nominated by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
on February 11, 1943, to an Associate Justice seat on the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (now the
) vacated by Associate Justice
Wiley Blount Rutledge.
He was "kicked upstairs" by President Roosevelt to the Court of Appeals to get him out of the Antitrust Division.
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 9, 1943, and received his commission on March 11, 1943.
His service terminated on July 9, 1945, due to his resignation.
Court of Appeals tenure
Although the District of Columbia Court of Appeals had some responsibility for review of decisions by federal
administrative agencies, during Arnold's tenure the court's primary role was reviewing decisions of local trial courts involving routine civil and
criminal
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...
matters arising in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
Arnold was never happy during his time on the court, resigning after only two years on the
bench. As an explanation of his decision, he told observers he "would rather be speaking to damn fools than listening to damn fools."
Arnold & Porter
Arnold returned to private practice in Washington, D.C., where,
along with
Paul A. Porter and
Abe Fortas
Abraham Fortas (June 19, 1910 – April 5, 1982) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1965 to 1969. Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Fortas graduated from Rho ...
, he co-founded the law firm known today as
Arnold & Porter.
Personal and death
Thurman married his lifelong partner Frances Longan Arnold on September 4, 1917. They had two children, Thurman Jr. and George, both of whom enjoyed successful careers in the law. Nebraskan "
Hugh Cox, famous as Thurman Arnold's chief deputy" and also as an early partner at Root Clark & Bird (later Root, Clark, Buckner & Ballantine; later
Dewey Ballantine, later
Dewey & LeBouef) was attorney for
Donald Hiss, brother of
Alger Hiss. Both Cox and Hiss were partners at
Covington & Burling
Covington & Burling LLP is an American multinational law firm. Known as a white-shoe law firm, it is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and advises clients on transactional, litigation, regulatory, and public policy matters. The firm has addition ...
, where he was called the "perfect advocate") during the
Hiss
Hiss or Hissing may refer to:
* Hiss (electromagnetic), a wave generated in the plasma of the Earth's ionosphere or magnetosphere
* Hiss (surname)
* ''Hissing'' (manhwa), a Korean manhwa series by Kang EunYoung
* Noise (electronics) or electro ...
-
Chambers Case."
Arnold died on November 7, 1969, at his home in
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...
.
Thurman Arnold Jr. established a law firm in Palm Springs, California in 1953. Thurman Arnold Jr.'s son, Thurman Arnold III,
joined his father's law firm in 1982 and is currently practicing law with an emphasis on Family Law in Palm Springs, California. George Arnold married and raised a family with Ellen Cameron Pearson, daughter of columnist
Drew Pearson and granddaughter of
Cissy Patterson, owner of the ''
Washington Times-Herald''.
References
Sources
Biographical sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
Primary sources
* Arnold, Thurman W. ''The Bottlenecks of Business''. New York: Reynal & Hitchcock, 1940.
* Arnold, Thurman W. ''The Folklore of Capitalism''. New Haven: Yale University Press; London: Humphrey Milford/Oxford University Press, 1937; 1962, with new preface.
* Arnold, Thurman W. ''The Symbols of Government''. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1935; New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1962, with new preface.
External links
*
*
*
Arnold & PorterThurman Wesley Arnold papersat the
American Heritage Center
The American Heritage Center is the University of Wyoming's repository of manuscripts, rare books, and the university archives. Its collections focus on Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain West (including politics, settlement, Native Americans, and W ...
Digitized selection of Thurman Wesley Arnold Papersarchived in the
American Heritage Center
The American Heritage Center is the University of Wyoming's repository of manuscripts, rare books, and the university archives. Its collections focus on Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain West (including politics, settlement, Native Americans, and W ...
digital archives.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnold, Thurman
1891 births
1969 deaths
20th-century mayors of places in Wyoming
Franklin D. Roosevelt administration personnel
American legal scholars
Princeton University alumni
Harvard Law School alumni
Arnold & Porter people
Lawyers from Washington, D.C.
United States assistant attorneys general for the Antitrust Division
Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
United States court of appeals judges appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt
American prosecutors
Mayors of places in Wyoming
Members of the Wyoming House of Representatives
Yale Law School faculty
People from Laramie, Wyoming
University of Wyoming faculty
20th-century members of the Wyoming Legislature