My favorite judge—I learned about him from my torts professor in law school—is Benjamin Nathan Cardozo. Born on May 24, 1870, his dad was a Tammany Hall judge tainted by corruption. Perhaps Cardozo entered the legal profession to rectify his father’s sins, but he amply compensated for his failings. Here is what Learned Hand, a famous colleague and Aquarius, said about Justice Cardozo:
“He was wise because his spirit was uncontaminated, because he knew no violence or hatred, or envy, or jealousy, or ill will. I believe it was this purity that chiefly made him the judge we so much revere, more than his learning, his acuteness and his fabulous industry.” (Historical Society of the New York Courts, “Benjamin Nathan Cardozo,” itself taken from The Judges of the New York Court of Appeals, edited by the Honorable Edwin Rosenblatt, 2007)
The above commentary tends to put Cardozo on a pedestal, but he spent many years in the legal trenches before being elevated to the bench. He was a very good man with excellent verbal reasoning ability and a literary style that was lilting and poetical. Ben enhanced his own reputation by being courteous, kind, and gentle in his personal life.
Benjamin Cardozo served on the New York State Court of Appeals for 18 years (1914 to 1932) and on the US Supreme Court for six. Much of his reputation rests on the decisions he made on the NY Court where he also was Chief Justice.
Cardozo and his twin sister were the youngest of six children. His mother died when he was nine, and he was reared largely by his sister Ellen who was eleven years older. Benjamin never married and lived with Ellen (called Nellie) until she died in 1929. When she had a stroke, Ben cared for her. (University of Minnesota Law School, Book Review, Cardozo by Andrew L. Kaufman)
Ben’s Most Important Case:McPherson v. Buick 217 NY 382 (1916)
Facts: Plaintiff McPherson brought a car from a retail dealer. The dealer had purchased the vehicle from Buick Motor Company. McPherson drove the vehicle and was thrown out and injured when a defective wooden wheel crumbled and collapsed. The wheel was not made by Buick but by another manufacturer. The defect could have been discovered by reasonable inspection. Buick never looked. (Studicata.com: Free Briefs for Law School Success)
Issue: Did Buick Motor Company owe a duty of care not just to the retailer but to the retailer’s customer who was injured by a defect that could have been discovered?
Holding: Buick had a duty of care to the customer. Manufacturers must ensure their products are not inherently dangerous to users. This extends beyond the immediate buyer to others who may foreseeably use the product.
Rationale: The duty of care is based on the foreseeability of harm and not just on contractual obligations. The duty of care had historically been limited to parties directly involved in a contract.
Public Policy Considerations: The case laid the groundwork for the modern principles of negligence and product liability and also emphasized consumer safety and manufacturer accountability in the stream of commerce. (Ibid)
Quotes
“Danger invites rescue.”
“The risk to be perceived defines the duty to be obeyed.”
“There are vogues and fashions in jurisprudence as in literature, art, and dress.”
“Lawsuits are rare and catastrophic experiences for the vast majority of men, and even when the catastrophe ensues, the controversy relates most often, not to the law, but to the facts. In countless litigations, the law is so clear judges have little discretion.”
“Prophecy, however honest, is generally a poor substitute for experience.”
“Because the constable erred, should the criminal go free?”
Horoscope Analysis
Benjamin Cardozo’s time of birth is speculative.
Viewing Cardozo’s chart as a whole, we see Saturn in a solitary position. Though this handle is not quite upright, the chart exemplifies the bucket pattern. Saturn is well-placed here, for he is in Sagittarius, one of the signs typically associated with the law.
With the bucket pattern all planetary energies are directed through the singleton.
Saturn is Sagittarius provided him with much intellectual capacity and a love of study.
A majority of the planets are in mutable signs. Benjamin would have been flexible and adaptable.
Another key to the nativity is the Pisces Moon. It is this position that made Ben kind and gentle. This placement can give artistic ability, and he was an artist with words. His “artistic” writing would have been further amplified by the joining of Venus with Neptune.
Cardozo had a Sun/Jupiter conjunction in communicative Gemini. While that conjunction may bestow material benefit and luck upon the recipient, it can also give a cultured, philosophic, and well-developed mind. Mercury is there as well. In Gemini it is logical, rational, and able to see all sides of a situation.