Frank, Jerome

Frank, Jerome (1889–1957) judge, legal philosopher; born in New York City. After graduating from the University of Chicago, and before attending its law school, he served as secretary to his political science professor, Charles E. Merriam. He handled corporate reorganizations in Chicago (1912–29) and New York (1929–33) before serving as counsel to several New Deal agencies. He then joined the Securities and Exchange Commission (1937–41) and went on to serve on a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (1941–57). His book Law and the Modern Mind (1930) argued for "legal realism," with an emphasis on the psychological forces at work in legal matters, and his Courts on Trial (1949) stressed the uncertainties and fallibility of the judicial process.