Ernst Freund
Ernst Freund was a significant figure in American legal scholarship, known for his contributions to administrative law and the balance between governmental regulation and individual rights. Born in New York to German parents, he was raised and educated in Germany before returning to the U.S. to practice law and teach. After earning his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1897, Freund held teaching positions at Columbia College and the University of Chicago. His analytical approach earned him recognition as a member of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws for nearly twenty-five years.
Freund's works, particularly "The Police Power: Public Policy and Constitutional Rights" (1904) and "Standards of American Legislation" (1915), explored the complexities of legislative authority and civil liberties. He was noted for advocating extensive judicial oversight of legislative actions, a perspective that was somewhat unconventional for his era. His scholarship emphasized the importance of rights such as freedom of assembly and speech, positing that these freedoms inherently support the right to political participation. Overall, Freund's legacy lies in his pioneering analysis of the interplay between law, policy, and individual freedoms in the United States.
Subject Terms
Ernst Freund
Scholar
- Born: January 30, 1864
- Birthplace: New York, New York
- Died: October 20, 1932
- Place of death: Chicago, Illinois
Significance: A legal scholar, Freund influenced the Supreme Court through his treatise on police powers and his theoretical defense of free speech.
Freund was born in New York while his German parents were visiting the United States but grew up and was educated in their homeland. He moved to the United States shortly after completing legal studies at Heidelberg. After briefly practicing law in New York City, he began teaching, first at Columbia College and later at the University of Chicago. He received a Ph.D. from Columbia in 1897.
Freund brought special awareness of administrative law to writing and teaching. A precise analyst, he was for almost twenty-five years a member of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. His practical experience made him a pioneering and enduring figure in U.S. law.
As a scholar, Freund concentrated on the issue of governmental regulation. One of his early works, The Police Power: Public Policy and Constitutional Rights (1904), dealing with the boundaries between community needs and individual rights, was noted and cited by the Supreme Court. Freund was both analytic and systematic in his treatment, with a unique style and point of view. He welcomed extensive judicial control over legislative action in a fashion unusual for legal writers of his time.
His most important work, Standards of American Legislation (1915), which emerged from a series of lectures, touches on a number of issues more lightly than some of his other works. Drawing on a lifetime of research, teaching, and bill drafting, Freund attempted to formulate both positive and negative tenets for legislation at its inception. In the work, he pointed out that freedom of assembly and free speech could without great assumption of authority be held to imply a right to association and political participation.