Wythe, George (wĭth), 1726–1806, American lawyer, signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. Elizabeth City co., Va. Admitted to the bar in 1746, Wythe was a member (1754–55, 1758–68) and clerk (1769–75) of the house of burgesses. An opponent of British colonial policy, he drafted a remonstrance against the Stamp Act (1765) and was a delegate to the Continental Congress (1775–76). Wythe, aided by Thomas Jefferson and Edmund Pendleton, revised (1776) the laws of Virginia, and was influential in getting Virginia to ratify the Constitution. Perhaps his greatest contribution was as professor of law (1779–90) at the College of William and Mary; his teachings influenced many, including John Marshall, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and Henry Clay. Wythe was one of the greatest early U.S. lawyers. He served as judge (1778–88) in the Virginia chancery court and as sole chancellor (1788–1801).

Wythe, George

(born 1726, Elizabeth City county, Va.—died June 8, 1806, Richmond, Va., U.S.) U.S. jurist and statesman. Admitted to the bar in 1746, he was a member (1754–55, 1758–68) and clerk (1769–75) of the Virginia House of Burgesses. He practiced law in Williamsburg, Va., where he taught Thomas Jefferson. At the College of William and Mary (1779–89) he became the first professor of law in the U.S.; among his pupils was John Marshall. A delegate to the Continental Congress, he signed the Declaration of Independence. In 1776 he was appointed, with Jefferson and two others, to revise the laws of Virginia. As a chancery judge (1778–1806), he asserted, in Commonwealth v. Caton (1782), the power of courts to refuse to enforce unconstitutional laws. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention (1787) and of the Virginia convention (1788) that ratified the Constitution of the United States.

Wythe, George (1726–1806) judge, law educator; born in Hampton, Va. He served as the colony of Virginia's attorney general and in the House of Burgesses, but he opposed Britain's Stamp Act (1764) and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was sole justice of Virginia's High Court (1789–1801). He defended judicial review, and at the College of William and Mary, he was the first professor of law in the United States (1779–90), teaching John Marshall, James Monroe, Henry Clay, and others who would become influential lawyers and government officials. He died from poisoning by a grandnephew seeking to secure a legacy.