Learned Hand

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Image:Learned Hand.jpg Billings Learned Hand (January 27, 1872 – August 18Template:Fn, 1961) — usually called simply Learned Hand — was a famed American judge and an avid supporter of free speech, though he is most remembered for applying economic reasoning to American tort law. Hand is generally considered to be one of the most influential American judges not to have served on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Born in Albany, New York, he attended the Albany Academy before training in law and philosophy at Harvard, studying under William James, Josiah Royce and George Santayana. He started practicing law in Albany before moving on to New York City. He later spent his free time at his vacation house in Cornish, New Hampshire, where he enjoyed the close friendship of novelist J.D. Salinger.

Hand served on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1909 to 1924 (see Masses Publishing Co. v. Patten, 244 F. 535 (S.D.N.Y. 1917), and on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1924 until 1951. Hand's judicial opinions are frequently considered classic formative statements of American contract and tort law. One of his most famous tools, commonly referred to as the calculus of negligence, first appeared in United States v. Carroll Towing, 159 F.2d 169 (2d Cir. 1947). The case was concerned with civil tort liability in a case alleging damage after a boat-owner's failure to adequately secure his vessel at harbor.

The calculus requires that financial liability should only be imposed for a tort if the burden of preventing the injury does not exceed the magnitude of the injury multiplied by its likelihood of occurring. The rule, also sometimes referred to as the "Hand Test," is most notable for its economic approach to a legal rule; an approach that is the foundation of the law and economics school of legal thought. Like many others in the law and economics school, most notably Judge Richard Posner, Hand was also influenced by philosophical pragmatism.

Hand's cousin, Augustus Noble Hand, was also a judge and also served on both the Southern District and the Second Circuit courts substantially during Learned's tenure at each.

In 1944, Judge Hand delivered an address at a patriotic rally in New York City's Central Park. The address, entitled The Spirit of Liberty, is one of Hand's most famous utterances. In it, he famously described the spirit of liberty as "the spirit which is not too sure that it is right."

One of the most famous quotes that Judge Learned Hand is known for is: "There is nothing sinister in so arranging one's affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible."

In another famous quote regarding the U.S. income tax law, Judge Hand wrote:

"Any one may so arrange his affairs that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which will best pay the Treasury; there is not even a patriotic duty to increase one's taxes[. . . . ]" Helvering v. Gregory, 69 F.2d 809, 810-11 (2d Cir. 1934).

Further reading

Gunther, Gerald. Learned Hand: The Man and the Judge. New York, 1994.

Chirelstein, Marvin. Learned Hand's Contribution to the Law of Tax Avoidance

Notes

Template:Fnb Some online sources report Hand's date of death as August 14. This article uses August 18, which is the date given in the Federal Judiciary Center profile of Judge Hand in addition to many other sources.