Justice Felix Frankfurter Quotes & Sayings

In a very real way Norman [Lear] godfathered me into my career. He was the best mentor anybody could have ever had. — Richard Masur

The words of the Constitution ... are so unrestricted by their intrinsic meaning or by their history or by tradition or by prior decisions that they leave the individual Justice free, if indeed they do not compel him, to gather meaning not from reading the Constitution but from reading life. — Felix Frankfurter

What becomes decisive to a Justice's functioning on the Court in the large area within which his individuality moves is his general attitude toward law, the habits of the mind that he has formed or is capable of unforming, his capacity for detachment, his temperament or training for putting his passion behind his judgment instead of in front of it. The attitudes and qualities which I am groping to characterize are ingredients of what compendiously might be called dominating humility. — Felix Frankfurter

Strength takes control, the ability, and the consistency to outweigh the obstacle at hand. No storm lats forever. — Chanekka Pullens

Why does anyone lie? 'Cause we're scared or crazy, maybe just because we're mean. I guess there's a million reason to lie, and I might've told that many ... but none like that. I guess there's always that one lie we never get over.
What?
Oh, maybe you don't know about it yet. Maybe you never tell a lie so big it can eat away a part of you. But if you ever do ... and if you get lucky ... you might a chance to set it right. Just one chance to change it. Then it's gone. And it never comes back again. — Billie Letts

The world will continue to change dramatically, but fighting and war can destroy us utterly. What we need now are techniques of harmony, not those of contention. The Art of Peace is required, not the Art of War. — Morihei Ueshiba

It may seem ironic that the judicial branch preserves its legitimacy through refraining from action on political questions. That concept was put forward best by Justice [Felix] Frankfurter, appointed by President [Franklin Delano] Roosevelt. — Sam Brownback

Though we all have the fear and the seeds of anger within us, we must learn not to water those seeds and instead nourish our positive qualities - those of compassion, understanding, and loving kindness. — Nhat Hanh