Justice William Henry Moody
Today’s Justice of the Day is: WILLIAM HENRY MOODY. Justice Moody was born on this day, December 23, in 1853.
Justice Moody was born in Newbury, Massachusetts, located in the state from which he would be appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States. He graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. in 1876, before attending his alma mater’s law school.
Justice Moody worked in private practice in Essex County, Massachusetts from 1878 to 1890, when he began a five-year terms as the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts; concurrent with his last two years as a private attorney, he also served as City Solicitor for Haverhill, Massachusetts. In 1895 his longtime work in Republican politics paid off as he took office as a Member of the United States House of Representatives from his home state, a position he would hold until 1902, the year he became Secretary of the Navy. Justice Moody left the executive branch in 1904 upon becoming the Attorney General of the United States, where he would remain until his appointment to the SCUS.
Justice Moody was nominated by President Theodore Roosevelt on December 3, 1906, to a seat vacated by Justice Henry Billings Brown. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 12, and received his commission that day. Justice Moody took the Judicial Oath to officially join the SCUS on December 17, and served almost his entire tenure on the Fuller Court (there was no sitting Chief Justice during his final few months). His service was terminated on November 19, 1910, due to his resignation.
Justice Moody is not especially well-known today, which can largely be attributed to the fact that his time in office (the 9th shortest in SCUS history) was cut short by a debilitating illness, as well as a lack of major cases during his tenure.