William Ball Gilbert (July 4, 1847 – April 27, 1931) was an American attorney and jurist from

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. He served as a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * Distric ...

and of the United States Circuit Courts for the Ninth Circuit. A native of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, he previously served in the

Oregon Legislative Assembly The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the State legislature (United States), state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper house, upper and lower chamber: the Oregon State Senate, Sena ...

Early life

Gilbert was born in Lewinsville,

on July 4, 1847 to Sarah Catherine Ball and John Gilbert.Colmer, Montagu, and Charles Erskine Scott Wood. 1910. ''History of the Bench and Bar of Oregon''. Portland, Or: Historical Pub. Co. p. 139. William was named after Colonel William Ball] the grandfather of

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

's mother Mary Ball;Frederick, David C. (1994)
''Rugged Justice: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the American West, 1891-1941''.
University of California Press. Berkeley. pp. 19-26. he was related to the colonel from his mother's side of the family. He went to local private schools in Lewinsville, located in

Fairfax County Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. With a population of 1,150,309 as of the 2020 census, it is the most populous county in Virginia, the most populous jurisdiction in the Washington ...

, and to schools in neighboring

Falls Church Falls Church City is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is part of both Northern Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area. As of 2020, it has ...

. The Gilbert family had pro-

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Unio ...

sympathies, and moved to

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

before the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Gilbert attended high school in

Zanesville Zanesville is a city in Muskingum County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Located at the confluence of the Licking and Muskingum rivers, the city is approximately east of Columbus and had a population of 24,765 as of the 2020 cen ...

, Ohio before moving to Williamstown,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

to attend

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

. He graduated from Williams in 1868 with an Artium Baccalaureus degree. After graduation he went to the

Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributary, tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries ...

on a scientific expedition followed by a geologic expedition to Ohio for two years. After giving up on a scientific career, he earned 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 1872 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 ...

. Gilbert was admitted to the bar in

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, ...

that year, and then moved to

Oregon

In 1873, Gilbert was admitted to the Oregon bar and began practicing law in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

with H. H. Northrup at what is now

Miller Nash Graham & Dunn LLP Miller Nash LLP is an American law firm based in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Established in 1873, the limited liability partnership has 147 attorneys firm wide. As of 2024, it was the third largest law firm in Portland when it had 98 att ...

. On September 3, 1873, Gilbert married Julia West Lindsley. In 1876, he went into a legal partnership with future

Governor of Oregon The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...

A. C. Gibbs, but only for one year before entering into a partnership with Northrup. Gilbert remained in private legal practice in Portland until 1892, working with John M. Gearin and Zera Snow. In 1888, he was elected to the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the upper house being the Oregon State Senate. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of ...

.Oregon Legislative Assembly (15th) 1889 Regular Session.
Oregon State Archives. Retrieved on February 14, 2008. A Republican, he represented Portland, serving only during the 1889 legislative session.

Federal judicial service

Gilbert was nominated by President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was the 23rd president of the United States, serving from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia—a grandson of the ninth president, William Henry Harrison, and a ...

on February 23, 1892, to the

and the United States Circuit Courts for the Ninth Circuit, to a new joint seat authorized by 26 Stat. 826. 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 18, 1892, and received his commission the same day. On December 31, 1911, the Circuit Courts were abolished and he thereafter served only on the Court of Appeals. He was a member of the

Conference of Senior Circuit Judges The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

(now the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

) from 1922 to 1930. His service terminated on April 27, 1931, due to his death at his home in Portland. He was the last federal judge in active service to have been appointed by President Harrison. After Gilbert's death, William Denman replaced him on the court.

Brief nomination controversy

Gilbert's nomination to the court was hampered when one of the associates in his firm, future judge

Wallace McCamant Wallace McCamant (September 22, 1867 – December 17, 1944) was an American jurist in Oregon. A Pennsylvania native, he served as the 46th justice of the Oregon Supreme Court from 1917 to 1918. Later he served briefly as a United States circuit j ...

, wrote a letter to a friend expounding that McCamant would gain financially from Gilbert's election to the court. After it was explained that the financial gain had to do with McCamant becoming partner in the firm if Gilbert left, and not something illicit, the nomination moved forward.

Courthouse and notable cases

Gilbert was assigned to the federal courthouse in Portland, now named the

Pioneer Courthouse The Pioneer Courthouse is a federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon, United States. Built beginning in 1869, the structure is the oldest federal building in the Pacific Northwest, and the second-oldest west of the Mississippi River. Along with ...

. While on the court he was responsible for many important decisions, while also serving as the senior ranking judge on the court for 34 years. These including cases concerning the scandal over gold mining in Alaska, a controversy over

Leland Stanford Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824June 21, 1893) was an American attorney, industrialist, philanthropist, and Republican Party (United States), Republican Party politician from Watervliet, New York. He served as the eighth governor of Calif ...

's estate and

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, a lawsuit over the

Teapot Dome The Teapot Dome scandal was a political corruption scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Warren G. Harding. It centered on Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall, who had leased United States Navy, Navy petroleum re ...

scandal, and the Ninth's opinion in what became the ''

Olmstead v. United States ''Olmstead v. United States'', 277 U.S. 438 (1928), was a decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, on the matter of whether wiretapping of private telephone conversations, conducted by federal agents without a search warrant with reco ...

wiretapping Wiretapping, also known as wire tapping or telephone tapping, is the monitoring of telephone and Internet-based conversations by a third party, often by covert means. The wire tap received its name because, historically, the monitoring connecti ...

case.

Relationship with Joseph McKenna

Gilbert also worked alongside

Joseph McKenna Joseph McKenna (August 10, 1843 – November 21, 1926) was an American politician who served in all three branches of the Government of the United States, U.S. federal government as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, as U.S. Attorne ...

, who would later become

United States Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the Federal government of the United States, federal government. The attorney general acts as the princi ...

before William McKinley nominated McKenna to the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

. Based on his poor view of McKenna's legal abilities, Gilbert openly opposed McKenna's nomination to the country's high court.

Later years

From 1893 to 1918, Gilbert lectured on constitutional law at the

University of Oregon School of Law The University of Oregon School of Law is a public law school in the U.S. state of Oregon. Housed in the Knight Law Center, it is Oregon's only state funded law school. The school, founded in 1884, is located on the University of Oregon campus i ...

. In 1898, he received an honorary doctorate of laws from his alma mater Williams College. In Portland, Gilbert was a member of the

Arlington Club The Arlington Club is a private social club organized in 1867 by 35 business and banking leaders of Portland in the US state of Oregon. First called the Social Club and later renamed the Arlington Club, it offered its all-male, largely white ...

, while in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

(home of the Ninth Circuit Court) he was a member of the Southern Club. Described as charming and industrious, he was a very private individual who also refused to ride in automobiles, which he disdained.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, William Ball 1847 births 1931 deaths Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Members of the Oregon House of Representatives University of Oregon faculty Williams College alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Portland, Oregon, Republicans People from McLean, Virginia United States federal judges appointed by Benjamin Harrison 19th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly 19th-century American lawyers Oregon lawyers 20th-century American judges