Stanley Forman Reed

Stanley Forman Reed (December 31, 1884 – April 2, 1980) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1938 to 1957. He also served as U.S. Solicitor General from 1935 to 1938.

Born in Mason County, Kentucky, Reed established a legal practice in Maysville, Kentucky, and won election to the Kentucky House of Representatives. He attended law school but did not graduate, making him the latest-serving Supreme Court Justice who did not graduate from law school. After serving in the United States Army during World War I, Reed emerged as a prominent corporate attorney and took positions with the Federal Farm Board and the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. He took office as Solicitor General in 1935, and defended the constitutionality of several New Deal policies.

After the retirement of Associate Justice George Sutherland, President Franklin D. Roosevelt successfully nominated Reed to the Supreme Court. Reed served until his retirement in 1957, and was succeeded by Charles Evans Whittaker. Reed wrote the majority opinion in cases such as Smith v. Allwright, Gorin v. United States, and Adamson v. California. He authored dissenting opinions in cases such as Illinois ex rel. McCollum v. Board of Education.