Scope and Contents
The collection comprises the papers of attorney, legal scholar, and Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Louis H. Pollak. The papers consist of correspondence and subject files documenting myriad aspects of his life and career, including his tenure as professor and dean at Yale Law School.
Dates
- 1948-2012
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research with the exception of Series IV, Box 60, which contains files of correspondence with current and former Justices of the United States Supreme Court. Correspondence with any current or former Justice of the United States Supreme Court shall remain closed to all research until the death of that Justice or former Justice.
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.
Original born digital files, as well as preservation masters, may not be accessed due to their fragility. Researchers must consult use copies, or if none exist request that they be made. Born digital files cannot be accessed remotely. System requirements include a Manuscripts and Archives computer and file viewing software.
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.
Original born digital files, as well as preservation masters, may not be accessed due to their fragility. Researchers must consult use copies, or if none exist request that they be made. Born digital files cannot be accessed remotely. System requirements include a Manuscripts and Archives computer and file viewing software.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by Louis H. Pollack was transferred to Yale University in 2012. These materials may be used for non-commercial purposes without seeking permission from Yale University as the copyright holder. For other uses of these materials, please contact mssa.assist@yale.edu. 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 Katherine Weiss Pollak, 2012. Gift of Kenneth S. Gallant, 2018.
Arrangement
The papers are arranged in four series and one addition: I. Alphabetical Correspondence, 1965-2012; II. Chronological Correspondence, 1964-2004; Series III. Subject Files, 1948-2004; IV. Supreme Court Justice Files, 1989-2012.
Extent
24.83 Linear Feet (66 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Overview
The collection comprises the papers of attorney, legal scholar, and Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Louis H. Pollak. The papers consist of correspondence and subject files documenting myriad aspects of his life and career, including his tenure as professor and dean at Yale Law School.
Biographical / Historical
Louis Heilprin Pollak, a United States District Court judge and former dean of the Yale Law School and University of Pennyslvania Law School, was born on December 7, 1922, in New York City. He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1943, and after serving in the United States Army, received his law degree from Yale. After graduating from law school, Pollak worked as a clerk for Justice Wiley B. Rutledge of the United States Supreme Court from 1948 to 1949, and thereafter accepted a position at the law firm Paul, Weiss, Wharton & Garrison (known as of 2013 as Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison). It was during his tenure at this firm that Pollak was recruited by Thurgood Marshall to serve as a volunteer for the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, which afforded him the opportunity to contribute significantly to several landmark civil rights cases.
Pollak was a member of the legal team that represented the plaintiffs in Brown v. Board of Education, the 1954 United States Supreme Court case that overturned legal segregation in American public schools. In 1965, he argued before the Supreme Court in the Abernathy v. Alabama case, which resulted in the reversal of criminal convictions of Freedom Riders who had campaigned to desegregate buses and bus stations in the South. Pollak also argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of the plaintiffs in McLaughlin v. Florida, in which the court unanimously repealed a law banning the cohabitation of people of different races.
Pollak joined the Yale Law School faculty in 1955 and was appointed dean in 1965, a position he held until 1970. In 1974, he joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and was named dean the following year. United States President Jimmy Carter appointed Pollak to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in 1978. During his 36-year tenure as a judge, Pollak was known as a staunch advocate of defendents' rights. In 1992, Pollak became a senior judge in semi-retirement, and in addition to his district court duties, sat by designation regularly with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and also often with the Ninth Circuit. Louis H. Pollak died on May 8, 2012, and at the time of his death, was survived by his wife, Katherine Weiss Pollak, five daughters, and seven grandchildren.
Pollak was a member of the legal team that represented the plaintiffs in Brown v. Board of Education, the 1954 United States Supreme Court case that overturned legal segregation in American public schools. In 1965, he argued before the Supreme Court in the Abernathy v. Alabama case, which resulted in the reversal of criminal convictions of Freedom Riders who had campaigned to desegregate buses and bus stations in the South. Pollak also argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of the plaintiffs in McLaughlin v. Florida, in which the court unanimously repealed a law banning the cohabitation of people of different races.
Pollak joined the Yale Law School faculty in 1955 and was appointed dean in 1965, a position he held until 1970. In 1974, he joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and was named dean the following year. United States President Jimmy Carter appointed Pollak to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in 1978. During his 36-year tenure as a judge, Pollak was known as a staunch advocate of defendents' rights. In 1992, Pollak became a senior judge in semi-retirement, and in addition to his district court duties, sat by designation regularly with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and also often with the Ninth Circuit. Louis H. Pollak died on May 8, 2012, and at the time of his death, was survived by his wife, Katherine Weiss Pollak, five daughters, and seven grandchildren.
- Title
- Guide to the Louis H. Pollak Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- compiled by Matthew Gorham, Christine Connolly, and Sheilah Robinson
- Date
- March 2013
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Contact:
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
mssa.assist@yale.edu
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
mssa.assist@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511