MARTIN, LUTHER

Luther Martin was a distinguished lawyer and statesman who played an influential role in U.S. law and politics during the early years of the republic. During most of his legal career, he served as Maryland's attorney general.

Most sources cite Martin's birth as being on February 9, 1748, near New Brunswick, New Jersey. He graduated from the College of New Jersey (now known as Princeton University) in 1766 and then taught school in Maryland for three years. In 1770, he began studying law and was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1771. He established a successful law practice in Maryland and Virginia and became known for his superior legal talents.

"… in a federal government, the parties to the compact are not the people, as individuals, but the States, as States; and … [it is] by the States as States, … that the system of government ought to be ratified, and not by the people, as individuals."
—Luther Martin

In 1774, Martin entered politics as a member of the Annapolis Convention, which was convened to formulate a list of grievances against the British government. In 1778, he was appointed to be Maryland's first attorney general, a position he would retain for most of the next 40 years. He attended the continental congress in 1785 and the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Martin opposed the idea of a strong federal government, preferring that power reside in the states. Unhappy with the final version of the Constitution, he opposed its ratification.

As an attorney, Martin achieved a prestigious reputation and argued several landmark cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. In fletcher v. peck, 10 U.S. (6 Cranch) 87, 3 L. Ed. 162 (1810), the Court for the first time invalidated a state law as contrary to the U.S. Constitution. The Georgia legislature had revoked a land grant that originally had been permitted by a contract. The Court ruled that public grants were contractual obligations and that they could not be abrogated without fair compensation. Chief Justice john marshall based the decision on the Contract Clause of the Constitution (Art. I, Sec. 10, Cl. 1), which provides that no state shall impair the obligations of contract.

Martin also appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court in mcculloch v. maryland, 17 U.S. (4 Wheat.) 316, 4 L. Ed. 579 (1819), where he argued that Maryland had the right to impose a tax on a federally chartered bank. Chief Justice Marshall ruled against Maryland, finding that the state had no authority under the Constitution to tax any agency that has been authorized by the federal government. In Marshall's words, "the power to tax is the power to destroy." Such a power did not comport with the allocation of powers under the Constitution.

Martin also served as counsel in two politically charged cases. In 1804, he successfully

helped to defend U.S. Supreme Court Justice samuel chase against impeachment. Chase, a Federalist judge who had outraged Democrats with several decisions that appeared to be based as much on politics as on law, was acquitted at his Senate trial after Martin convinced senators that the impeachment itself was politically motivated.

In 1807, Martin represented aaron burr, who was accused of treason. Martin argued that the charge was baseless and that it was motivated by President Thomas Jefferson's personal and political dislike of Burr. His indictment of the Jefferson administration helped to convince the jury to acquit Burr.

Martin suffered a stroke in 1820, shortly after arguing McCulloch v. Maryland. Despite his stature and his successful law practice, Martin was insolvent. The Maryland legislature levied a $5 license fee on every attorney to help support Martin. In 1823, Aaron Burr took Martin into his home, where Martin lived for three years. Martin died on July 10, 1826, in New York City.

further readings

Hall, Kermit L. 1989. The Magic Mirror. New York: Oxford Univ. Press.

cross-references

Bank of the United States; Constitution of the United States.

Luther Martin

Luther Martin (1748-1826) was an American lawyer, Revolutionary War patriot, and member of the Constitutional Convention.

Luther Martin was born in Metuchen, N. J., on Feb. 9, 1748. He attended the grammar school of the College of New Jersey (Princeton) and the college itself, graduating in 1766. Moving to Maryland, he taught school and studied law. Admitted to the Virginia bar in 1771 and to the Maryland bar the next year, he practiced in both colonies. Despite his land ownership and lucrative law practice, Martin mismanaged his financial affairs, and was sued for debt as early as 1770.

Martin's personal life was a succession of tragedies. The deaths of two wives left him with three daughters. One daughter became insane and died. Another married against her father's wishes and died a few years later; her son died in early manhood. Martin himself became infatuated with Aaron Burr's daughter, who was already married.

Martin lent his legal talent to the Revolutionary cause. He published defenses of the patriot position and, as Maryland's attorney general during the war, vigorously prosecuted Tories. As a Maryland delegate to the Constitutional Convention, he made prolix, ungrammatical, and often disorganized speeches, that commanded attention and made him a leading spokesman of the states'-rights interests. He insisted on equal representation of the states in Congress, sought to limit the powers of both Congress and the president, and insisted that the Constitution be submitted to the state legislatures for ratification. He refused to sign the finished document and led opposition to its ratification in Maryland.

Martin's political career became a peculiar combination of adherence to the Federalist party and continued defense of states' rights. His federalism stemmed in part from his intense, personal anti-Jeffersonianism, which exploded in public attacks. His hostility to Jefferson was exacerbated by the 1805 impeachment trial of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase, Martin's lifelong friend. Martin's arguments helped bring about Chase's acquittal. In 1807 Martin again opposed Jefferson in the famous treason trial of Aaron Burr; Martin's skillful defense aided in getting Burr acquitted.

In two other important cases, Fletcher v. Peck (1810) and McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), Martin argued for states' rights. However, Chief Justice John Marshall's nationalism proved to be more compelling in both instances and, in the process, produced historic Supreme Court decisions enlarging the scope of national jurisdiction.

Though Martin became increasingly intemperate in later years, his popular reputation was attested by the extraordinary action of the Maryland Legislature in levying a license tax on attorneys to create a trust fund for its now destitute former attorney general. Martin died in New York City on July 10, 1826. Universally acknowledged as a distinguished orator and a legal genius in his day, Martin contributed to the nation's legal development.

Further Reading

The only full-length biography is Paul Clarkson and R. Samuel Jett, Luther Martin of Maryland (1970). It is as definitive as the absence of any significant body of Martin papers allows. Martin's legal career is treated briefly in Charles Warren, History of the American Bar (1911; repr. 1966), and his participation in the Chase and Burr trials more fully in Albert J. Beveridge, Life of John Marshall (4 vols., 1916-1919). Martin's role in the Constitution struggle may be traced in Max Farrand, ed., The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 (4 vols., 1911-1937; rev. ed. 1966). □

Luther Martin c.1748–1826, American lawyer and political leader, b. New Brunswick, N.J. He practiced law in Maryland and became the first attorney general of the state, holding office from 1778 to 1805 and again from 1818 to 1822 (although he was inactive in his last two years of office). He was a delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention but refused to sign the Constitution because he felt it violated states' rights. Martin, considered one of the nation's leading lawyers, was one of the defense counsel in the trials of Justice Samuel Chase (1805) and of Aaron Burr (1807). He was a bitter opponent of Thomas Jefferson.

Bibliography: See biography by P. S. Clarkson and S. R. Jett (1970).