Kent, JAMES

Kent, JAMES, an American jurist, was born in New York state, 31st July 1763, graduated at Yale in 1781, and was admitted to the bar in 1787. After serving two terms in the legislature he was professor of Law in Columbia College from 1794 to 1798, when he was appointed a justice of the supreme court of New York; and in 1804 he became chief-justice, and in 1814 chancellor of the state. In 1823 he retired from the bench, but he continued his chamber practice for many years after. Kent's principal publication was his famous Commentaries on American Law (4 vols. New York, 1826-30; 14th ed. 1894), a monumental work, which has not yet been superseded in the United States. He died 12th December 1847.