Scope and Contents
The John Hart Ely papers consists of teaching files, research papers, drafts of articles, legal briefs, professional and personal correspondence, and video tapes documenting Ely's legal and teaching career. The bulk of the collection contains accumulated notes and research materials pertaining to Ely's writings on constitutional law from 1968 to 2003.
Dates
- 1833-2003
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The computer files in Accession 2012-M-023 are closed until processed. All other materals are open to research.
Original audiovisual materials, as well as preservation and duplicating masters, may not be played. Researchers must consult use copies, or if none exist must pay for a use copy, which is retained by the repository. Researchers wishing to obtain an additional copy for their personal use should consult Copying Services information on the Manuscripts and Archives web site.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright is retained by the donor, Robert D. Ely, for materials authored or otherwise produced by John Hart Ely. After December 20, 2050, or the lifetime of the donor, whichever occurs first, copyright passes to Yale University. Copyright status for other collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Robert D. Ely, 2010-2011.
Arrangement
The papers are arranged by topic and additional material.
Extent
19.25 Linear Feet (32 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The John Hart Ely papers consists of teaching files, research papers, drafts of articles, legal briefs, professional and personal correspondence, and video tapes documenting Ely's legal and teaching career. The bulk of the collection contains accumulated notes and research materials pertaining to Ely's writings on constitutional law from 1968 to 2003.
Biographical / Historical
John Hart Ely was born in New York City on December 3, 1938. He received his A.B. from Princeton University in 1960 and LL.B. from Yale Law School in 1963. He held the following academic appointments: professor, Yale Law School, 1968-1973; professor, Harvard Law School, 1973-1982; professor, Stanford Law School, 1982-1996, dean of the Stanford Law school from 1982-1987; and professor, University of Miami School of Law, 1996-2003.
In 1962 he clerked for Abe Fortas and assisted with drafting a brief on behalf of Clarence Gideon who had been tried and convicted without legal representation. The next year, Gideon v. Wainwright was overturned by the United States Supreme Court on the grounds that underprivileged citizens accused of serious crimes are entitled to legal representation paid for by the government. After graduating from Yale Law School, he served as the youngest member of the Warren Commission that investigated the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He also was a criminal defense lawyer in San Diego. In 1975 he left academia briefly to work for the U. S. Department of Transportation serving as legal counsel to Secretary William Coleman; Ely was involved in litigation relating to landing rights in the United States for the Concorde, the supersonic transport.
Ely’s most important work was in constitutional law and he was best known for his book, Democracy and Distrust: A Theory of Judicial Review (Harvard, 1980). His other books include War and Responsibility (Princeton, 1993) and On Constitutional Ground (Princeton, 1996).
Ely died on October 25, 2003, in Miami, Florida.
- Coleman, William T. (William Thaddeus), 1920-2017
- Concorde (Jet transports)
- Constitutional law -- United States
- Ely, John Hart, 1938-
- Fortas, Abe, 1910-1982
- Harvard Law School
- Judicial review -- United States
- Law -- Study and teaching -- United States
- Stanford University. School of Law
- United States. Department of Transportation
- University of Miami. School of Law
- War and emergency powers -- United States -- History
- Yale Law School
- Title
- Guide to the John Hart Ely Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- compiled by Michael Lotstein
- Date
- April 2011
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511