Edward S. Corwin
Edward S. Corwin was a prominent constitutional scholar whose work significantly influenced American constitutional interpretation during the 20th century. He is best known for his analysis of the due process of law, particularly his distinction between procedural and substantive due process, with many of his key writings compiled in his book "Liberty Against Government" (1948). Corwin was critical of the Supreme Court's limitations on national authority and its invalidation of laws aimed at protecting public welfare, echoing the sentiments of earlier Progressive thinkers. His influential writings also addressed judicial review and the role of federal courts in the 19th century, emphasizing the concept of vested rights. One of his most widely recognized contributions is "The Constitution and What It Means Today" (1920), a concise summary of constitutional law that remained in circulation for over eighty years. Throughout his career at Princeton University, Corwin’s expertise was acknowledged through various roles, including supervising constitutional law guides for Congress and serving as cochair for an American Bar Association committee opposing the Bricker Amendment in 1953. His legacy includes a substantial body of work, with a notable presence in "Selected Essays on Constitutional Law" (1963), reflecting his enduring impact on the field.
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Edward S. Corwin
Significance: Constitutional law expert Corwin traced the history of due process law and criticized the Supreme Court for creating a twilight zone in which neither state nor federal law applied.
Corwin was the premier constitutional analyst of his time, shaping much of the terminology and style of American discourse in the field of constitutional history. His major contribution was in typifying the history of due process of law, from procedural to substantive. Most of his key articles on this subject are collected in his Liberty Against Government (1948). Although historians increasingly find use of substantive due process that predates the Fourteenth Amendment, Corwin’s general view still dominates. Corwin also questioned the Supreme Court’s crippling of national authority and its creation of a twilight zone where neither state nor federal legislation was possible. Corwin, like the Progressives before him, criticized the Court for holding unconstitutional many statutes designed to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public.
Corwin’s other important works include essays on the higher law basis of judicial review and on the federal courts’ use of the doctrine of vested rights in the nineteenth century. He also advanced the study of the presidency, especially concerning war powers and foreign power. His most enduring and popular work was The Constitution and What It Means Today (1920), a clause-by-clause terse summary of constitutional law that, modified and revised, remained in print more than eighty years later. His preeminence was acknowledged in many ways. He was asked to supervise expansion of his 1920 work into a guide for Congress on constitutional law, which was revised and updated many times. He was asked to serve as cochair of an American Bar Association committee to oppose the Bricker Amendment (1953), which aimed to limit the scope of international treaties and the president’s power to negotiate them, and he has by far the largest number of articles of any author in Selected Essays on Constitutional Law, 1938-1962 (1963), collected by the American Association of Law Schools. He was a consultant to the Department of Justice in Carter v. Carter Coal Co. (1936). Recruited by Princeton University president Woodrow Wilson, Corwin taught for his entire career at that institution.