James Thompson (lawyer)

James Thompson (born October 1, 1806 in Middlesex , Butler County , Pennsylvania , †  January 28, 1874 in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania) was an American lawyer and politician .

Thompson first learned the printing trade. He then studied law , was admitted to the bar in 1829 and then began to practice in Erie . He began his political career in 1832 when he entered the Pennsylvania House of Representatives , which he served until 1834 and then again in 1855. In 1834 he was the speaker of this parliamentary chamber.

After serving as a delegate to the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention in 1838, he subsequently held the post of presiding judge in the sixth judicial district of his state. From March 4, 1845 to March 3, 1851 Thompson then sat as a Democrat in the House of Representatives of the United States , where he chaired the Justice Committee , among other things . In 1850 he decided not to run again and turned back to the legal system. From 1857 to 1866 he was a member of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania as an assessor and from 1866 to 1872 as Chief Justice of Pennsylvania. Until his death he practiced again as an independent lawyer.

Web links

• James Thompson in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)