Augustus Noble Hand (July 26, 1869 – October 28, 1954) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and later was a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit . His most notable rulings restricted the reach of obscenity statutes in the areas of literature and contraceptives . He was the older first cousin of famed judge Learned Hand , who served on both courts with his cousin during most of Augustus Hand's tenure.
26-745: Born in Elizabethtown , New York , Hand received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from Harvard University in 1890, and earned a law degree from Harvard Law School in 1894. He then established a private practice in New York City , which he maintained until 1914. Hand was nominated by President Woodrow Wilson on September 28, 1914, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York vacated by Judge George Chandler Holt . He
52-671: A charge by Lord Denman that the publication of Shelley's "Queen Mab" was an indictable offense are a warning to all who have to determine the limits of the field within which authors may exercise themselves. We think that Ulysses is a book of originality and sincerity of treatment and that it has not the effect of promoting lust. Accordingly it does not fall within the statute, even though it justly may offend many. Hand's cousin, Judge Learned Hand , joined in Augustus Hand's opinion; Chief Judge Martin Manton dissented. In 1946, Hand
78-676: A circuit may serve seven years or until they attain the age of 70. There are some limited exceptions. Similar provisions apply for the Chief Judge of the Court of International Trade. See United States Code 258. In the U.S. state of New York , the judge that presides over the state's highest court, the New York Court of Appeals , is titled the "chief judge". Similarly, their fellow jurists on that court are titled "judges", while jurists who sit on lower courts are titled "justices". This
104-403: A historical perspective of the harm of overzealous censorship: Art certainly cannot advance under compulsion to traditional forms, and nothing in such a field is more stifling to progress than limitation of the right to experiment with a new technique. The foolish judgments of Lord Eldon about one hundred years ago, proscribing the works of Byron and Southey , and the finding by the jury under
130-536: A licensed physician , were not immoral or obscene devices banned under the Comstock Law provisions incorporated into the Tariff Act of 1930. Hand wrote that "we are satisfied that this statute, as well as all the acts we have referred to, embraced only such articles as Congress would have denounced as immoral if it had understood all the conditions under which they were to be used. Its design, in our opinion,
156-457: A vacancy on the bench by the fact of their promotion. See 28 U.S.C. § 45 . These rules have applied since October 1, 1982. The office of chief judge was created effective September 1, 1948, replacing what had been known as the "Chief Justice" of the District of Columbia Circuit and the "Senior Circuit Court Judge" on the other circuits. Until August 6, 1959, it was filled by
182-600: Is a town in Essex County , New York , United States. The population was 1,163 at the 2010 census. The county seat of Essex County is the hamlet of Elizabethtown , located in the northern part of the town. The name is derived from Elizabeth Gilliland, the wife of an early settler. Elizabethtown is in the east-central part of Essex County. It is 39 miles (63 km) southwest of Burlington, Vermont , 104 miles (167 km) south of Montreal, Quebec , and 117 miles (188 km) north of Albany . The town calls itself
208-477: Is a north-south highway. New York State Route 9N is an east-west highway, which intersects U.S. Route 9 in downtown Elizabethtown. The town is also in the Adirondack High Peaks region, and is 18 miles (29 km) from Mount Marcy , the highest point in the state. As of the census of 2000, there were 1,315 people, 497 households, and 318 families residing in the town. The population density
234-654: Is water. The Black River, a northward-flowing tributary of the Boquet River , marks part of the eastern town line. Interstate 87 , the Northway, is a major divided highway passing through the southeastern part of Elizabethtown. There are no exits within the town limits; the closest access is from Exit 32 (Stowersville Rd), just to the north in Lewis and from Exit 31 (NY 9N) just to the east in Westport . U.S. Route 9
260-798: The Federal judiciary of the United States , the chief judge has primary responsibility for the administration of the court. Chief judges are determined by seniority. The chief judge commonly presides over trials and hearings . In the Supreme Court of the United States the highest-ranking member is the Chief Justice of the United States . In the United States courts of appeals , the chief judge has certain administrative responsibilities and presides over en banc sessions of
286-590: The "Pleasant Valley". William Gilliland, an investor, bought up large tracts of land in Essex County. The town was first settled around 1792 near New Russia. The town of Elizabethtown was established in 1798 from the town of Crown Point . The community of Elizabethtown in this town became the county seat, succeeding a location in the town of Essex . Parts of the town were used to form the towns of Moriah (1808), Keene (1898), and Westport (1815). The lumber industry and processing iron ore were important in
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#1732780593935312-486: The First Circuit . In United States district courts with at least two judges, the chief judge has certain administrative responsibilities, including presiding over some meetings of the judges. The chief judge remains an active judge of the court hearing and deciding cases, but may take on a reduced caseload to perform administrative tasks. The qualifications for chief judge and the selection process are essentially
338-421: The age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.92. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under
364-462: The age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 22.1% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 24.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $ 32,244, and the median income for a family was $ 44,531. Males had a median income of $ 28,295 versus $ 23,594 for females. The per capita income for
390-550: The beginning, but tourism became prominent by the end of the 19th century. The Hand-Hale Historic District and Hubbard Hall are listed on the National Register of Historic Places . According to the United States Census Bureau , the town has a total area of 83.1 square miles (215.3 km ), of which 81.6 square miles (211.4 km ) is land and 1.5 square miles (3.8 km ), or 1.78%,
416-530: The court and meetings of the Judicial Council . The chief judge remains an active judge of the court hearing and deciding cases, but at their option may elect to take on a reduced caseload to provide time to perform administrative responsibilities. In order to qualify for the office of chief judge, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge. A vacancy in
442-430: The longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire on what has since 1958 been known as senior status or declined to serve as chief judge. From then until October 1, 1982, it was filled by the senior such judge who had not turned 70. Lists of the judges who have served as chief judge of each of the courts of appeals can be found in the articles for the respective circuits, such as United States Court of Appeals for
468-444: The office of chief judge is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position. Unlike the Chief Justice of the United States , a chief judge stays in active service after the expiration of their term and does not create
494-637: The same for the district courts and for the courts of appeals. See 28 U.S.C. § 136 . The chief judge of each judicial circuit and the Chief Judge of the Court of International Trade are members — along with a district judge from each judicial circuit — of the Judicial Conference . The Chief Justice of the United States is the presiding officer of the Conference. 28 U.S.C. § 45 provides that chief judge of
520-431: The town was $ 17,059. About 9.1% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the poverty line , including 20.8% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over. Chief judge (United States) A chief judge (also known as presiding judge , president judge or principal judge ) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge . According to
546-443: Was 16.1 inhabitants per square mile (6.2/km ). There were 794 housing units at an average density of 9.7 per square mile (3.7/km ). The racial makeup of the town was 97.49% White , 0.68% African American , 0.61% Asian , 0.08% Pacific Islander , 0.23% from other races , and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.38% of the population. There were 497 households, out of which 30.8% had children under
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#1732780593935572-660: Was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 30, 1914, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on June 1, 1927, due to his elevation to the Second Circuit. Hand received a recess appointment from President Calvin Coolidge on May 19, 1927, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated by Judge Charles Merrill Hough . He
598-603: Was nominated to the same position by President Coolidge on December 6, 1927. He was confirmed by the Senate on January 18, 1928, and received his commission the same day. He assumed senior status on June 30, 1953. His service terminated on October 28, 1954, due to his death in Middlebury , Vermont . One of Hand's best-known decisions was rendered in the case of United States v. One Package , 86 F.2d 737 ( 2d Cir. 1934), in which he ruled that contraceptives , when imported by
624-550: Was not obscene and therefore could not be banned from import into the United States. The opinion was significant in its urging that any test of obscenity could not rely on mere isolated passages but instead had to consider the work as a whole, a test the Supreme Court later endorsed. These principles, filtered through a long line of later cases, ultimately influenced the United States Supreme Court's case law on obscenity standards. Hand's opinion also displayed
650-497: Was not to prevent the importation, sale, or carriage by mail of things which might intelligently be employed by conscientious and competent physicians for the purpose of saving life or promoting the well being of their patients." The same year, Hand further limited the Tariff Act's restrictions in United States v. One Book Called Ulysses , 72 F.2d 705 ( 2d Cir. 1934), which ruled that the novel Ulysses , by James Joyce ,
676-627: Was temporarily assigned to a three-judge panel of the New York Southern District Court for the U.S. government's antitrust case against the eight largest movie distributors. The court's per curiam decree in United States v. Paramount Pictures , 70 F.Supp. 53 ( S.D.N.Y. 1946), significantly altered the motion picture industry in the United States, by forbidding the distributors from colluding with movie theaters in such anti-competitive licensing practices as price-fixing . Elizabethtown, New York Elizabethtown
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