# Warren E. Burger *Chief Justice of the United States, 1969–1986; a Saint Paul native whose name is carried by Minnesota institutions.* Warren Earl Burger (September 17, 1907 – June 25, 1995) was the fifteenth Chief Justice of the United States and held the office from 1969 to 1986.[^1] He was a native of [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]].[^2] In 1931 he graduated magna cum laude from the St. Paul College of Law, the county's [[Night law school]], which later became William Mitchell College of Law and is now [[Mitchell Hamline School of Law]].[^3] Before joining the Supreme Court, he led the Civil Division of the [[United States Department of Justice]] as an Assistant Attorney General under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He then sat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit from 1956 to 1969.[^4][^1] Several Minnesota institutions bear his name. They include the Warren E. Burger Federal Courthouse in Saint Paul, the Warren E. Burger Library at Mitchell Hamline, and a bust placed in the [[Minnesota State Capitol]] in 1984.[^4] The [[Warren E. Burger American Inn of Court]] was chartered on September 20, 1989, and is affiliated with Mitchell Hamline. It operates under the [[American Inns of Court]] mission to "perfect the quality, availability and efficiency of justice". The project's companion analysis, *The Instrument No One Will Name*, records that the program it actually runs is eight collegial dinners a year for people already inside the profession.[^5] Burger wrote or joined a number of decisions on [[Title VII]] and race-conscious remedies: - He wrote for an 8–0 Court in *Griggs v. Duke Power Co.* (1971).[^6] - He wrote the plurality opinion upholding a 10 percent federal set-aside in *Fullilove v. Klutznick* (1980).[^7] - He dissented in *United Steelworkers v. Weber* (1979).[^8] - In his final term he wrote a dissent opposing court-ordered numerical goals (478 U.S. 421, July 2, 1986).[^9] On January 14, 2026, the United States sued the State under Title VII in [[United States v. State of Minnesota (0:26-cv-00273)]]. The Department of Justice's release No. 26-21 is titled *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*.[^10] The complaint cites [[Minn. Stat. § 43A.191]] eight times.[^11] ## Early life Burger was born in Saint Paul in 1907 to Katharine (née Schnittger) and Charles Joseph Burger. He was one of seven children in a Presbyterian household of Austrian German descent.[^4] An attack of polio at age eight kept him out of school for a year.[^4] At [[Van Buren School]] he met [[Harry Blackmun]] in kindergarten. The two were later called "the Minnesota Twins".[^12][^13] He led the student council at John A. Johnson High School and graduated in 1925. Princeton offered him a partial scholarship, which he turned down because his family could not cover the rest of the cost.[^4] ## Education and early career Burger took University of Minnesota extension courses for two years while working as an insurance salesman. He then completed his Bachelor of Laws at the St. Paul College of Law in 1931, magna cum laude, and joined a St. Paul firm.[^3][^15][^4] He went on to teach at the school. The project's Ramsey County companion history records that he taught Contracts and Trusts there for about 17 years; Wikipedia gives the span as twenty-two years.[^14][^4] In 1937 he was the eighth president of the Saint Paul Jaycees.[^4] A spinal condition barred him from military service in World War II. He instead sat on Minnesota's emergency war labor board from 1942 to 1947. From 1948 to 1953 he served on the Minnesota governor's interracial commission, a body working on racial desegregation. He also presided over St. Paul's Council on Human Relations.[^4] He backed Governor [[Harold Stassen]]'s 1948 bid for the Republican presidential nomination. At the 1952 Republican National Convention, Stassen fell below 10 percent of the vote, which released Minnesota's delegates from their pledge to him. Burger then led the delegation in switching its votes to Eisenhower.[^4] ## Assistant Attorney General After winning the 1952 election, Eisenhower placed Burger at the head of the Justice Department's Civil Division as an Assistant Attorney General.[^4] Burger's first argument before the Supreme Court defended the loyalty-grounds dismissal of a Yale professor who had consulted for the government. The Solicitor General had refused to argue that case, and Burger lost it.[^4] In *Dalehite v. United States*, 346 U.S. 15 (1953), he successfully defended the United States against claims arising from the Texas City disaster. He argued that the Federal Tort Claims Act of 1947 did not permit negligence suits over policy-making.[^4] ## Court of Appeals service On January 12, 1956, Eisenhower named Burger to the D.C. Circuit seat that had belonged to Judge Harold M. Stephens. Senate confirmation came on March 28, 1956, and his commission issued the following day.[^1][^4] He remained on that court until June 23, 1969, when he moved to the Supreme Court.[^1] On the appeals bench he was known as a critic of the Warren Court.[^4] By 1959 Burger and Blackmun both held federal appellate seats.[^16] ## Chief Justice ### Nomination and confirmation [[Earl Warren]] announced his retirement in June 1968. President [[Lyndon Johnson]] nominated [[Abe Fortas]] to succeed him, but a Senate filibuster blocked the nomination and Johnson withdrew it.[^4] Richard Nixon had pledged during his campaign to appoint a strict constructionist as Chief Justice. He nominated Burger on May 23, 1969.[^4] The Judiciary Committee held its hearing on June 3, 1969, with Burger as the only witness, and voted unanimously to report the nomination favorably. The [[United States Senate]] confirmed him 74–3 on June 9, 1969.[^4] He took the oath on June 23, 1969.[^1] ### Decisions - *Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education*, 396 U.S. 19 (October 29, 1969), the first civil-rights case of the Burger Court, ordered immediate desegregation in place of the "all deliberate speed" standard.[^17][^18] - *[[Griggs v. Duke Power]] Co.*, 401 U.S. 424 (March 8, 1971): Burger wrote for an 8–0 Court. Under the opinion, Title VII reaches the consequences of employment practices and not only the employer's motivation.[^6][^14] - *Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education*, 402 U.S. 1 (April 20, 1971): Burger wrote the unanimous opinion approving busing as a desegregation remedy.[^19] - *Roe v. Wade*, 410 U.S. 113 (January 22, 1973): Burger concurred.[^20] He later voted with the majority in *Harris v. McRae* and with the dissent in *Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists*.[^4] - *United States v. Nixon*, 418 U.S. 683 (July 24, 1974): Burger wrote for the 8–0 Court. The decision rejected the President's executive-privilege claim and ordered the Watergate tapes produced.[^21][^22] - *Milliken v. Bradley*, 418 U.S. 717 (July 25, 1974): Burger wrote the 5–4 majority, which Blackmun joined, limiting interdistrict busing remedies.[^23][^24] - *Regents of the University of California v. Bakke* (June 28, 1978): Justice Powell's opinion allowed race as a factor but not quotas, and Burger joined the bloc opposing quotas.[^25] - *United Steelworkers v. Weber* (June 27, 1979): Burger dissented, while Blackmun concurred.[^8] - *Fullilove v. Klutznick*, 448 U.S. 448 (July 2, 1980): Burger's plurality upheld the 10 percent federal set-aside. It reasoned that Congress need not be "color-blind" in remedying past discrimination.[^7][^14] - *Diamond v. Chakrabarty*, 447 U.S. 303 (1980): Burger wrote the majority opinion that opened the way to patenting in biotechnology.[^26] - *INS v. Chadha*: Burger's majority opinion invalidated the one-house legislative veto.[^4] - 478 U.S. 421 (July 2, 1986): in his final term, Burger dissented in opposition to court-ordered numerical goals.[^9] ### Oaths and administration On August 9, 1974, after Nixon resigned, Burger swore in Gerald R. Ford.[^27][^28] He administered the presidential oath to Ronald Reagan on January 20, 1981.[^4] As Chief Justice he worked on the administration of the federal judiciary. He helped found the National Center for State Courts and the Supreme Court Historical Society, and he served as the Society's first president.[^4] After the 1977 Anglo-American Exchange he brought the English Inns-of-Court model to the United States, where the first Inn formed on February 2, 1980.[^5] ### Retirement Burger announced on June 17, 1986, that he would retire after 17 years as Chief Justice.[^4] The project's companion history records 287 opinions authored over his tenure.[^14] He left the Court on September 26, 1986, the day [[William Rehnquist]] and Antonin Scalia were sworn in. That date ended the Burger Court and began the Rehnquist Court.[^29][^4] ## Later life and death After leaving the Court, Burger chaired the Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution.[^4] In 1988 he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.[^4] He died of congestive heart failure at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington on June 25, 1995, aged 87, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.[^4] His papers went to the College of William and Mary, where he had been Chancellor. Under the donor agreement they remain closed until ten years after the death of the last surviving Burger Court member, [[Sandra Day O'Connor]], who died on December 1, 2023.[^4] ## Legacy Burger is cited as an early proponent of alternative dispute resolution. Addressing the American Bar Association in 1984, he said: "Our system is too costly, too painful, too destructive, too inefficient for a truly civilized people."[^4] The Warren E. Burger American Inn of Court was organized by Thomas J. Lyons, Justice John Simonett and Professor John O. Sonsteng, and chartered on September 20, 1989.[^5] The project's time table places the charter at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul. The American Inns of Court directory lists the chapter as the Warren E. Burger American Inn of Court, Minneapolis.[^5][^33] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Burger was born in Saint Paul and graduated from the St. Paul College of Law in 1931.[^2][^3] - His grade-school classmate Harry Blackmun was sworn in as an Associate Justice on June 9, 1970, and served until 1994.[^30] ### What - **The federal action.** On January 14, 2026, the United States filed *United States v. State of Minnesota*, No. 0:26-cv-00273 (D. Minn.), under Title VII of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. - The complaint cites Minn. Stat. § 43A.191 eight times. These include subdivision 3(c)'s requirement that an agency explain its reason for hiring a non-affirmative candidate.[^11] - The record assembled here shows the case as filed and carries no ruling on the merits. - **The Department of Justice's description.** DOJ release No. 26-21 (January 14, 2026) is titled *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*. Attorney General Pamela Bondi certified the case as a matter of general public importance.[^10] - **The term "regime".** The U.S. government uses "regime" for governments it opposes. The [[Iraq Liberation Act]] of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-338), for example, states a policy of supporting efforts to remove "the regime headed by Saddam Hussein."[^32] The project's catalogue of U.S.-government "regime" usages (*[[How Minnesota Got Here]]*, note 40) finds that Minnesota is the only U.S. state so described.[^32] - **Related Supreme Court holding.** In *[[Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services]]*, 605 U.S. 303 (2025), the Supreme Court held that Title VII's disparate-treatment provision "draws no distinctions between majority-group plaintiffs and minority-group plaintiffs". The Court also rejected the Sixth Circuit's heightened "background circumstances" rule for majority-group plaintiffs.[^31] ### When - He was nominated to the D.C. Circuit on January 12, 1956, and confirmed on March 28, 1956.[^1] - He was sworn in as Chief Justice on June 23, 1969.[^1] - He announced his retirement on June 17, 1986, and left office on September 26, 1986.[^4][^29] ### Where - The Warren E. Burger Federal Courthouse is in Saint Paul. The Warren E. Burger Library is at Mitchell Hamline.[^4] ## Notes [^1]: Federal Judicial Center, *Burger, Warren Earl* (biographical directory) — D.C. Circuit nomination January 12, 1956, confirmation March 28, 1956, service to June 23, 1969; Chief Justice 1969–1986. https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/burger-warren-earl [^2]: Minnesota Historical Society, *MNopedia: Burger, Warren Earl (1907–1995)* — Saint Paul native, life dates. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/person/burger-warren-earl-1907-1995 [^3]: Mitchell Hamline School of Law, *Warren E. Burger, 1931* (alumni biography) — LL.B. magna cum laude, St. Paul College of Law, 1931. https://mitchellhamline.edu/history/biography/warren-e-burger-1931/ [^4]: Wikipedia, *Warren E. Burger* (rev. 1380646181, retrieved 2026-10-26) — early life, career, nomination, decisions, oaths, later life and legacy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_E._Burger [^5]: American Inns of Court, *Home* — Warren E. Burger American Inn of Court chartered September 20, 1989; mission statement; Burger's import of the Inns model after 1977; first U.S. Inn February 2, 1980. https://home.innsofcourt.org/ [^6]: Wikipedia, *Griggs v. Duke Power Co.* — 401 U.S. 424 (March 8, 1971), opinion by Burger, C.J. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griggs_v._Duke_Power_Co [^7]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Fullilove v. Klutznick*, 448 U.S. 448 (July 2, 1980) — Burger, C.J., plurality. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/448/448/ [^8]: Wikipedia, *United Steelworkers v. Weber* (June 27, 1979) — Burger dissent; Blackmun concurrence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Steelworkers_v._Weber [^9]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *478 U.S. 421* (July 2, 1986) — Burger dissent opposing court-ordered numerical goals. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/478/421/ [^10]: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*, release No. 26-21 (January 14, 2026) — title; Attorney General's certification. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-department-justice-files-lawsuit-against-minnesotas-affirmative-action-regime [^11]: U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, *Complaint, United States v. State of Minnesota*, No. 0:26-cv-00273 (filed January 14, 2026) — Title VII claims; eight citations of Minn. Stat. § 43A.191, including subd. 3(c). https://www.justice.gov/crt/media/1423361/dl [^12]: Minnesota Historical Society, *MNopedia: Blackmun, Harry (1908–1999)* — met Burger in kindergarten at Van Buren School; "the Minnesota Twins." https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/person/blackmun-harry-1908-1999 [^13]: MPR News, *The other 'Minnesota Twins': Harry Blackmun and Warren Burger* (March 13, 2013) — the pairing of the two justices. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2013/03/13/the-other-minnesota-twins-harry-blackmun-and-warren-burger [^14]: How Minnesota Got Here, *Ramsey County companion history* (2026-09-02), rows HE-0103, HE-0167, HE-0183, HE-0192 — teaching span of about 17 years; Griggs 8–0; Fullilove 10% set-aside; 287 authored opinions. [^15]: Mitchell Hamline School of Law, *Saint Paul College of Law / William Mitchell Alumni History – Warren E. Burger* — alumni record. https://mitchellhamline.edu/history/biography/warren-e-burger-ll-b-1912/ [^16]: Library of Congress, *Harry A. Blackmun Papers: About this Collection* — Blackmun's federal appellate service from 1959. https://www.loc.gov/collections/harry-a-blackmun-papers/about-this-collection/ [^17]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education*, 396 U.S. 19 (October 29, 1969) — order for immediate desegregation. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/396/19/ [^18]: Wikipedia, *Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education* — departure from "all deliberate speed." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_v._Holmes_County_Board_of_Education [^19]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education*, 402 U.S. 1 (April 20, 1971) — unanimous opinion by Burger, C.J. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/402/1/ [^20]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Roe v. Wade*, 410 U.S. 113 (January 22, 1973) — Burger concurrence. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/410/113/ [^21]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *United States v. Nixon*, 418 U.S. 683 (July 24, 1974) — 8–0 opinion by Burger, C.J. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/418/683/ [^22]: Wikipedia, *United States v. Nixon* — order to hand over Watergate evidence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Nixon [^23]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Milliken v. Bradley*, 418 U.S. 717 (July 25, 1974) — 5–4 limit on interdistrict remedy. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/418/717/ [^24]: Wikipedia, *Milliken v. Bradley* — majority by Burger; Blackmun joining. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milliken_v._Bradley [^25]: Wikipedia, *Regents of the University of California v. Bakke* (June 28, 1978) — Powell opinion; Burger in anti-quota bloc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regents_of_the_University_of_California_v._Bakke [^26]: Supreme Court of the United States (via Justia), *Diamond v. Chakrabarty*, 447 U.S. 303 (1980) — Burger majority on biotechnology patenting. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/447/303/ [^27]: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library, *Chief Justice Warren Burger swore in Gerald R. Ford* — the August 9, 1974 oath. https://fordlibrarymuseum.tumblr.com/post/176806909587/chief-justice-warren-burger-swore-in-gerald-r [^28]: Wikipedia, *Watergate scandal* — Nixon's resignation, August 9, 1974. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal [^29]: Wikipedia, *Rehnquist Court* — Rehnquist and Scalia sworn in September 26, 1986. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rehnquist_Court [^30]: Federal Judicial Center, *Blackmun, Harry Andrew* (biographical directory) — Associate Justice 1970–1994; sworn in June 9, 1970. https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/blackmun-harry-andrew [^31]: Supreme Court of the United States, *Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services*, 605 U.S. 303 (2025) — Title VII disparate-treatment holding. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/23-1039_c0n2.pdf [^32]: U.S. Congress, *Iraq Liberation Act of 1998*, Pub. L. 105-338 — "the regime headed by Saddam Hussein"; cited with the project's catalogue finding (How Minnesota Got Here, note 40). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-105publ338/pdf/PLAW-105publ338.pdf [^33]: American Inns of Court, *Find an Inn: Warren E. Burger American Inn of Court* — directory listing (Minneapolis). https://www.inn.org/find-an-inn/detail/warren-e-burger-american-inn-of-court