Gerard D. Reilly

Gerard Denis Reilly (September 27, 1906 – May 18, 1995) was an official at the United States Department of Labor and the chief judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

Gerard Denis Reilly[1]
Senior Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals
In office
1976–1995
Chief Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals
In office
July 24, 1972 – 1976
Preceded byAndrew M. Hood
Succeeded byTheodore R. Newman Jr.
Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals
In office
1970 – 1976[2]
Nominated byRichard Nixon
Succeeded byTheodore R. Newman Jr.
Personal details
Born(1906-09-27)September 27, 1906[3]
Boston, Massachusetts
DiedMay 18, 1995(1995-05-18) (aged 88)[4]
Washington, D.C.
Spouse(s)Eleanor Fahey[5]
ChildrenMargaret Ann Reilly Hefern, John Fahey Reilly, Gerard Denis Reilly Jr.
Alma materHarvard College (B.A.)
Harvard Law School (LL.B.)

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Reilly received his bachelor's and law degrees at Harvard University, where he was a cross country runner.[6] He moved to Washington, D.C. in 1933 to work at the Labor Department under the new administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt. He served as Solicitor of Labor from 1937 to 1941 and as a member of the National Labor Relations Board, an independent agency from 1941 to 1946.[7] During his time as solicitor, a resolution of impeachment was filed against him and Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins by Republican Representative J. Parnell Thomas, who accused them of refusing to deport labor leader Harry Bridges.[8] The impeachment resolution was rejected by the House Judiciary Committee, but the Republican members of the committee all signed on to a minority report severely censuring the officials.

In 1947, Reilly served as counsel to the Senate Committee on Labor and Public Welfare and helped draft the Taft-Hartley Act. Among other changes in United States labor law, Reilly pushed for a prohibition on secondary boycotts and greater rights for employers, including allowing employers to deliver anti-union messages in the workplace.[9] After the bill's passage, Reilly entered private practice in Washington. From 1957 to 1958, he served as chair of the labor law section of the American Bar Association.

In 1970, President Nixon appointed Reilly to the D.C. Court of Appeals, and in 1972 Nixon elevated him to chief judge. He retired from active duty in 1976 when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 70 but continued serving as a senior judge until his death in a car accident in 1995.[10] As a judge, Reilly was known for his colorful writing style.[6][4] His brother Thomas F. Reilly served as a Catholic bishop in the Dominican Republic. His law clerks included future federal judge Ann D. Montgomery.

References
  1. Gerard Denis Reilly gravestone
  2. Report of District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission
  3. Hearings, Reports and Prints of the Senate Committee on the District of Columbia
  4. "G. D. Reilly, 88, Former Judge And Official in the Labor Dept". The New York Times. May 21, 1995.
  5. Eleanor F. Reilly, Active in School And Civic Groups
  6. Stein, Jacob A. (March 2015). "Your Honors: Two Judges, Two Very Colorful Cases". Washington Lawyer. Washington, D.C. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  7. Gerard D. Reilly, Legislative History of the Taft-Hartley Act, 29 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 285, 285 (1960-1961)
  8. "Impeachment Move Against Perkins Killed". Chicago Daily Tribune. March 25, 1939. p. 6.
  9. Wheildon, L. (1946). Revision of the Wagner Act. Editorial research reports 1946 (Vol. II). Washington, DC: CQ Press.
  10. "Retired D.C. Appeals Court Judge Gerard Reilly, 88, Dies in Car Crash". The Washington Post. May 18, 1995.
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