Justice The Guardian Of Liberty

Inscription Of The US Supreme Court Building

This is the inscription on the East Pediment or rear façade of the US Supreme Court building. I believe it is much less known than the one on the west façade or main entrance to the US Supreme Court building. Although, I would argue it is the more important one and future nominees to the US Supreme Court should be seriously challenged on this one during their confirmation hearings.

Eerily Silence On The US Supreme Court Website

There is a two page PDF file on the US Supreme Court website that describes some details about this inscription, but not much is said about its origin other than that then Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes coined it in 1932. Same is true for the court building page. The search function on the court’s website does not help much.

When you try to Google or Bing this inscription you come up basically empty handed as to the origin.

The Dual Meaning Of Justice

From an article published in the ABA Journal (735), I got that idea, i.e. “Justice the Guardian of Liberty: John Marshall at the Trial of Aaron Burr” by Harold Burton published in 1951.

Thus justice as it is inscribed has two meanings it is the abstract concept of justice, but also each justice on the court is supposed to be a guardian of individual liberty.

Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes

Here are some quotes from Chief Justice Evans Hughes from the Wikiquote website that may shed some light how this inscription can be interpreted (Emphasis added):

·         “… the judiciary is the safeguard of our liberty and of our property under the Constitution.”

·         “While democracy must have its organizations and controls, its vital breath is individual liberty”

Thus, Chief Justice Evans Hughes recognized that liberty is the high goal of justice and justice serves liberty.