Burger, Warren Earl

Born September 17, 1907, in St. Paul, MN
Died June 25, 1995, in Alexandria, VA

Federal Judicial Service:
Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Nominated by Dwight D. Eisenhower on January 12, 1956, to a seat vacated by Harold M. Stephens. Confirmed by the Senate on March 28, 1956, and received commission on March 29, 1956. Service terminated on June 23, 1969, due to appointment to another judicial position.

Chief Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Nominated by Richard M. Nixon on May 23, 1969, to a seat vacated by Earl Warren. Confirmed by the Senate on June 9, 1969, and received commission on June 23, 1969. Assumed senior status on September 26, 1986. Service terminated on June 25, 1995, due to death.

Supreme Court Oath:
June 23, 1969

Allotment as Circuit Justice:

Fourth Circuit, June 9, 1970-September 25, 1986
District of Columbia Circuit, June 9, 1970-September 25, 1986
Federal Circuit, October 1, 1982-September 25, 1986

Education:
St. Paul College of Law (now Mitchell Hamline School of Law), LL.B., 1931

Professional Career:

Private practice, St. Paul, Minnesota, 1931-1953
Instructor in contracts and trusts, St. Paul College of Law, 1931-1948
Assistant attorney general, Civil Litigation Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 1953-1956
Presiding officer, Judicial Conference of the United States, 1969-1986
Chair of the board, Federal Judicial Center, 1969-1986

Other Nominations/Recess Appointments:

Nominated to U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, June 21, 1955; no Senate vote

Bibliography

Gandolfo, John T., Jr. “Chief Justice Warren Burger.” Delaware Lawyer, vol. 1, no. 1 (Spring 1982): 19.

Lamb, Charles. “Making of a Chief Justice: Warren Burger on Criminal Procedure, 1956-1969.” Cornell Law Review, vol. 60, no. 5 (1974-1975): 743-88.

Maltz, Earl M. The Chief Justiceship of Warren Burger, 1969-1986. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 2000.

Tamm, Edward A. and Paul C. Reardon. “Warren E. Burger and the Administration of Justice.” Brigham Young University Law Review, vol. 1981, no. 3 (1981): 447-522.

Tobias, Carl. “Warren Burger and the Administration of Justice.” Villanova Law Review, vol. 41, no. 2 (1996): 505-20.

Trowbridge, Ronald L. With Sweet Majesty, Warren E. Burger. Washington, DC: Trust for the Bicentennial of the Constitution, 2000.

Wheeler, Russell. “Warren Burger: A Man of Common Sense and Practical Ideas.” Judicature, vol. 79, no. 1 (Jul-Aug. 1995): 8-9.

Symposium: “The Jurisprudence of Chief Justice Warren E. Burger.” Oklahoma Law Review, vol. 45, no. 1 (Spring 1992): 1-168.

Manuscript Collections

College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, Va.
Warren E. Burger papers, ca. 1930-1995.
Collection includes personal and professional papers, and memorabilia documenting Burger's professional life and judicial career. The collection is closed to researchers until 2026.

Oral History

Burger, Warren. "The 1952 Republican Convention." Oral history interview conducted by Amelia Fry on May 28, 1975. Earl Warren Oral History Project, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 1987. Transcript, 22 p. plus appendices.

Burger, Warren. Oral history interview conducted by A.C. Viebranz on January 14, 1992. National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, D.C., 1992. Transcript, 24 p.; sound cassette, ca. 45 min.

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Burger, Warren Earl