Blackmun Comes to Harvard, Presides in Ames Competition

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun '29 spent Monday at Harvard as a guest speaker and presiding judge in the Law School's annual Ames Moot Court Competition.

Although he was in Cambridge primarily for the competition, he also spoke on a recent landmark Supreme Court decision at a special session of Moral Reasoning 22, "Justice."

The federal court certainly the Supreme Court, is no place to win a popularity contest. Blackmun told about 600 students. Every case is going to hurt someone. So often in our cases we come up with the argument that this is not the better common good did the individual has to give way a little bit, even though he was constitutional rights."

Blackman spent the afternoon at a tea and then joined Law Schhol Dean James Vorenberg `49 and 200 others for dinner before the Moot Court session began.

At the final round of the third-year law students' Moot Court Competition--held before a standing-room-only crowd--Blackman heard two six-member teams argue both sides of an actual case facing the Supreme Court.

This year, the case was "Hawaii Housing Authority vs. John Makalena," and the three presiding justices were Blackmun. Tenth Circuit Judge Stephaine Seymour, and District of Columbia Circuit Court Judge Harry Edwards.

"I hope everyone had a safe flight in from Hawaii tonight." Blackmun quipped The Justice, who attended the Law School was on the Moot Court team in his third year and said he remembered the pressure.

"I remember how nervous I was, but for the life of me. I really have forgotten what the case was all about," he said. Blackmun said he receives about 40 invitations to sit on moot courts each year, but is too busy to accept many of them.

"It's gotten to the point where the Justices do not do this anymore, but I do have a little sentiment for Harvard," he said and explained. "This was my college and my law school, so I can't walk through the Yard with out feeling some sentiment."