Background
Lewis L. Fawcett was born on September 23, 1872, in Brooklyn, New York, to James Mark Fawcett and Elizabeth Anne Hale Fawcett. He died in Brooklyn in 1952, shortly before his eightieth birthday.
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Lewis L. Fawcett
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Lewis L. Fawcett was an American judge and justice of the New York Supreme Court. He served on the bench for thirty-six years, including service as judge of the Kings County Court and twenty-five years on the New York Supreme Court. He became known in Brooklyn for his criminal court work and for presiding over one of New York State’s first matrimonial courts.
Education
Fawcett attended public schools in Brooklyn and later graduated from New York Law School at the age of twenty-one.
According to contemporary accounts, he received perfect scores on both the written and oral portions of his bar examination.
Career
Fawcett served as chairman of the Republican General Committee of Kings County from 1901 to 1906. In 1906, he became judge of the Kings County Court and remained on that court until 1917.
In 1918, he was elected justice of the New York Supreme Court. Altogether, he served thirty-six years on the bench, including twenty-five years as a Supreme Court justice.
Early in his judicial career, he became known as the “Sunday School Judge” because of his treatment of youthful first offenders. In criminal sentencing, he also gained the nickname “Forty-Year Fawcett.” Between 1906 and 1927, he reportedly sentenced more than 7,000 defendants to prison terms, including approximately 1,200 sentences of forty years or more.
In 1932, Lewis Fawcett presided over the opening session of New York State’s matrimonial court established within the Supreme Court in Brooklyn. By the end of the first month, the court reportedly cleared more than 1,000 matrimonial cases from its calendar.
Membership
Fawcett belonged to numerous civic, fraternal, and social organizations, including Kismet Temple Shrine, Royal Arcanum, Heptasophs, Red Men, Elks Lodge No. 22 of Brooklyn, and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.
He was also associated with the Rotary Club, Lougi Grotto, Crescent Athletic Club of Brooklyn, Lake Placid Club, Adirondack Mountain Club, and the Juvenile Club, serving as president of the latter from 1900 to 1906.
Connections
Fawcett never married. He was survived by his brother, James M. Fawcett, also a retired New York Supreme Court justice, and two sisters.
References
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Born
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Died
September, 1952 (aged 79) -
Nationality
American