"To the extent that the judicial profession becomes the daily routine of deciding cases on the most secure precedents and the narrowest grounds available, the judicial mind atrophies and its perspective shrinks."

Philosophy

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Insight & Reflection

This reflection on philosophy by Irving R. Kaufman resonates across generations. It highlights a fundamental truth about human nature: our continuous search for meaning in philosophy is what ultimately defines our character and our path forward.

About Irving R. Kaufman

Irving Robert Kaufman was a United States federal judge, first on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and then on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Early in his tenure on the District Court, he became nationally known for presiding over the espionage trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, and for sentencing the couple to death. Later in his career, he issued landmark rulings on cases involving the First Amendment, civil rights, and antitrust law. In 1987, he was a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

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"The Supreme Court's only armor is the cloak of public trust its sole ammunition, the collective hopes of our society."

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"The judicial system is the most expensive machine ever invented for finding out what happened and what to do about it."

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"A fact must be assimilated with, or discriminated fromm, some other fact or facts, in order to be raised to the dignity of a truth, and made to convey the least knowledge to the mind."

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"If you really want something you just hang with it. We think our future's ahead and not behind."

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