Home Insights Judge Posner who relied on Wikipedia retires at 78
Judge Posner who relied on Wikipedia retires at 78
Judge Richard Posner served for 35 years and was famous for his reliance on Wikipedia as legal authority for the past 10 years was known for his "restless intellect, withering candor and superhuman output made him among the most provocative figures in American law in the last half-century." The New York Times September 11, 2017 article entitled "An Exit Interview With Richard Posner, Judicial Provocateur" included these observations about the retirement of Judge Posner (US 7th Circuit Court of Appeals):
The immediate reason for his retirement was less abstract, he said.
He had become concerned with the plight of litigants who represented themselves in civil cases, often filing handwritten appeals.
Their grievances were real, he said, but the legal system was treating them impatiently, dismissing their cases over technical matters.
Before his appointment to the bench he was a well-respected law professor at the University of Chicago where many of my friends have reflected about his great teaching prowess.