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Quote by Felix Frankfurter

“Ambiguity lurks in generality, and may thus become an instrument of severity.”

Quote by Felix Frankfurter

Author

Felix Frankfurter

Felix Frankfurter was a former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Born on November 15, 1882, and passing away on February 22, 1965, Frankfurter is renowned for his contributions to law and constitutional interpretation. His decisions and opinions have had a profound impact on the American legal system. more

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“Of compelling consideration is the fact that words acquire scope and function from the history of events which they summarize.”

Facts Events Function Acquire Consideration Compelling Scope

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“The line must follow some direction of policy, whether rooted in logic or experience. Lines should not be drawn simply for the sake of drawing lines.”

Should Lines Policy Logic Sake Drawing Rooted Drawing The Line

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“No court can make time stand still.”

Stills Court Making Time

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“A phrase begins life as a literary expression; its felicity leads to its lazy repetition, and repetition soon establishes it as a legal formula, undiscriminatingly used to express different and sometimes contradictory ideas.”

Ideas Different Sometimes Used Expression Phrases Lazy Formulas Repetition Contradictory Felicity

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“In law also the emphasis makes the song.”

Law Song Emphasis In-laws

Book:Felix Frankfurter on the Supreme Court: extrajudicial essays on the Court and the Constitution

Source: Felix Frankfurter on the Supreme Court: extrajudicial essays on the Court and the Constitution

“Even when I was at CIA, I'd go to visit foreign leaders and I'd say, 'You know, I'm not a diplomat. I'm just an old CIA guy'... I said, 'If I wanted to be diplomatic, I'd have been a diplomat.'”

Ifs Knows Has Beens Said Wanted Guy Leader Cia Diplomatic Diplomats

Author:Robert M. Gates

“The Procrustean bed is not a symbol of equality. It is no less inequality to have equality among unequals.”

Bed Inequality Symbols

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“It has not been unknown that judges persist in error to avoid giving the appearance of weakness and vacillation.”

Giving Judging Weakness Errors Appearance Persist Vacillation

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“There is torture of mind as well as body; the will is as much affected by fear as by force. And there comes a point where this Court should not be ignorant as judges of what we know as men.”

Knows Men Should Mind Wells Body Force Judging Court Ignorant Torture Affected

Author:Felix Frankfurter

“The eternal struggle in the law between constancy and change is largely a struggle between history and reason, between past reason and present needs.”

Needs Reason Past Law Struggle Eternal Constancy

Author:Felix Frankfurter