Lewis F. Powell Jr.

Lewis F. Powell Jr.
Official portrait, 1976
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
In office January 7, 1972 – June 26, 1987[1]
Nominated by	Richard Nixon
Preceded by	Hugo Black
Succeeded by	Anthony Kennedy
Chairman of Virginia State Board of Education
In office 1968–1969
88th President of American Bar Association
In office 1964–1965
Preceded by	Walter Early Craig
Succeeded by	Edward W. Kuhn
Chairman of Richmond School Board
In office 1952–1961
Personal details
Born	Lewis Franklin Powell Jr. (1907-09-19)September 19, 1907 Suffolk, Virginia, U.S.
Died	August 25, 1998(1998-08-25) (aged 90) Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Resting place	Hollywood Cemetery
Political party	Democratic[2]
Spouse	Josephine Pierce Rucker ​ ​ (m. 1936; died 1996)​
Children	4
Education	Washington and Lee University (BA, LLB) Harvard University (LLM)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1942–1945
Rank	Colonel
Unit	319th Bombardment Group United States Army Air Forces United States Department of War United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe
Battles/wars	World War II Operation Torch Allied invasion of Sicily Mediterranean Theater
Awards	Legion of Merit Bronze Star Croix de Guerre
Lewis F. Powell Jr.'s voice Lewis F. Powell Jr. delivers the opinion of the Court in Chiarella v. United States Recorded March 18, 1980

Lewis Franklin Powell Jr. (September 19, 1907 – August 25, 1998) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1972 to 1987.

Born in Suffolk, Virginia, he graduated from both the Washington and Lee University School of Law and Harvard Law School and served in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. He worked for Hunton & Williams, a large law firm in Richmond, Virginia, focusing on corporate law and representing clients such as the Tobacco Institute. His 1971 Powell Memorandum became the blueprint for the rise of the American conservative movement and the formation of a network of influential right-wing think tanks and lobbying organizations, such as The Heritage Foundation and the American Legislative Exchange Council. In 1971, President Richard Nixon appointed Powell to succeed the late Associate Justice Hugo Black. He retired from the Court during the administration of President Ronald Reagan, and was eventually succeeded by Anthony Kennedy.

His tenure largely overlapped with that of Chief Justice Warren Burger, and Powell was often a key swing vote on the Burger Court. His majority opinions include United States v. Brignoni-Ponce (1975), Gregg v. Georgia (1976), First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti (1978), Solem v. Helm (1983), and McCleskey v. Kemp (1987), and he wrote an influential opinion in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978). He notably joined the majority in controversial cases such as United States v. United States District Court (1972), Roe v. Wade (1973), Milliken v. Bradley (1974), Harris v. McRae (1980), Plyler v. Doe (1982), and Bowers v. Hardwick (1986).