J. Lee Rankin | |
|---|---|
 Rankin, c. 1950 | |
| 31st Solicitor General of the United States | |
| In office August 4, 1956 – January 23, 1961 | |
| President | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| Preceded by | Simon Sobeloff |
| Succeeded by | Archibald Cox |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Lee Rankin (1907-07-08)July 8, 1907 |
| Died | June 26, 1996(1996-06-26) (aged 88) |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
James Lee Rankin (July 8, 1907 – June 26, 1996[1]) was the 31stUnited States Solicitor General.
Rankin was born inHartington, Nebraska, the son of Herman P. and Lois Gable Rankin. He attended public schools and earned his undergraduate and law degree from theUniversity of Nebraska College of Law.[2] In 1930 Rankin was admitted to the Nebraska bar and began practicing law inLincoln. In 1935, he became a partner at his firm, where he worked for more than 20 years.
Rankin served asUnited States Solicitor General from 1956 to 1961. In 1952, Rankin managedDwight Eisenhower'spresident campaign inNebraska and in 1953, Eisenhower selected Rankin to serve asUnited States Assistant Attorney General.[3]
In 1953, Rankin was appointed assistant attorney general in charge of theOffice of Legal Counsel. In this capacity, Rankin may best be remembered for arguing in favor of the black plaintiffs inBrown v. Board of Education (1954),[4] advocating that the doctrine ofseparate-but-equal facilities for blacks and whites was unconstitutional. After theSupreme Court'sBrown ruling, Rankin argued before the court that the effort todesegregate schools should take place gradually in order to avoid violence. Accordingly, he suggested the plan by which local school districts submitted desegregation plans tofederal judges in their states.
Rankin argued many other important cases before the Supreme Court. He was instrumental in resolving conflicting claims among Western states to theColorado River and in establishing a balance of federal and state jurisdictions in offshoreoil drilling.
On August 14, 1956, Rankin was appointed U.S. Solicitor General. In response to lawsuits in many states arising out of legislativereapportionment fights, he developed theJustice Department's position that led to the principle ofone man, one vote. After serving as solicitor general from August 1956 to January 1961, Rankin represented theAmerican Civil Liberties Union in advancing the landmark caseGideon v. Wainwright,[5] which solidified the right of an indigent person accused of a crime to have legal counsel at public expense.
Following PresidentJohn F. Kennedy's assassination and the appointment ofChief JusticeEarl Warren to serve as the chairman of thePresident's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, Rankin was selected by Warren to serve as general counsel in the inquiry that concluded thatLee Harvey Oswald had acted alone in killing Kennedy. According to author Edward Epstein, Rankin was primarily an administrator and lent a guiding hand in shaping the investigation. The 14-man legal staff was divided into seven two-man teams, each of which handled a separate area of the investigation and contributed a chapter to the commission's final report. The staff lawyer whom Epstein credited with redrafting and editing the commission's voluminous report wasNorman Redlich.
After his work with the Warren Commission, Rankin practiced law inNew York City until the 1970s, working seven years as theNew York City Corporation Counsel (1966-1972).
Upon retirement, Rankin and his wife of 63 years Gertrude moved toWeston, Connecticut, where they had a summer home. In 1993, they relocated toLos Gatos, California.
Rankin died on June 26, 1996, inSanta Cruz, California.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of theSolicitor General of the United States.
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Solicitor General 1956–1961 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
