Powell, Lewis Franklin, Jr. definition of Powell, Lewis Franklin, Jr. in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

Powell, Lewis Franklin, Jr., 1907–98, American lawyer, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1971–87), b. Suffolk, Va. He studied law at Washington and Lee Univ. and was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1931. He had a successful law practice in Richmond and held several local offices. Powell also held several prestigious positions, including president of the American Bar Association and chairman of the Virginia Board of Education. After repeatedly declining President Nixon Nixon, Richard Milhous, 1913–94, 37th President of the United States (1969–74), b. Yorba Linda, Calif.

Political Career to 1968

A graduate of Whittier College and Duke Univ. law school, he practiced law in Whittier, Calif.
..... Click the link for more information. 's requests to join the Supreme Court, he finally accepted (1971) the post. Respected as a conservative in his jurisprudence, he was socially liberal, particularly in his ardent support of school integration. On the Supreme Court, he proved his moderate stance on various issues, voting with the majority in the landmark abortion ruling in Roe v. Wade Roe v. Wade, case decided in 1973 by the U.S. Supreme Court. Along with Doe v. Bolton, this decision legalized abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy.
..... Click the link for more information. . His best-known opinion was Regents of the University of California v. Bakke Allan Bakke, 1940–, a white applicant. The legal implications of the decision were clouded by the Court's division. Bakke had twice been rejected by the medical school, even though he had a higher grade point average than a number of minority candidates who were admitted.
..... Click the link for more information. (1978), in which he upheld the principle of affirmative action affirmative action, in the United States, programs to overcome the effects of past societal discrimination by allocating jobs and resources to members of specific groups, such as minorities and women.
..... Click the link for more information. while rejecting the use of quotas. He was often the swing vote on closely contested decisions.