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A Conversation on Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law with Two Presiding Justices

Wednesday, October 23, 2024 | 5:30 PM | Watch the Program Video!

Featuring Hon. Dianne T. Renwick and Hon. Dunstan Mlambo

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Samuel Jones Tilden: Lawyer, Statesman, and Victim of Fate

Check out our latest podcast episode of Chatting with the Authors of Judicial Notice with guest Hon. Helen E. Freedman on the subject of her JN article Samuel Jones Tilden, where she discusses his early years, breaking up Boss Tweed’s ring, and his 1876 contested election bid. Watch or Listen Now!

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Empire State Plaza: Albany’s Modern Monoliths

In the latest episode of Wrecking Ball Series, host Adrian Untermyer and guests Hon. Margaret Cangilos-Ruiz, Carol H. Krinsky, and Gina Pollara discuss the Empire State Plaza’s twisted history covering politics, intrigue, and the Rockefeller Family’s one-time dominance over civic and cultural life in New York State. Watch or Listen Now!

Head Back to School with Our Teaching Democracy Toolkit

As teachers turn to planning for the new school year, we review our educational materials! Our initiatives have one central goal: to empower students to be better informed citizens. Our Teaching Democracy Toolkit provides a variety of resources for NYS educators teaching social studies, US history, and government. Learn more!

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nylegalhistory

The Society's mission is to preserve, protect and promote the legal history of New York State.

As we approach the 250th anniversary of Patriots’ Day in 2025—a commemoration of the first battles of the American Revolution at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775—we’re highlighting stories from New York’s own Revolutionary past. Though often overshadowed by events in Massachusetts, New York was a vital site of resistance and radical ideas.

Among its early patriots was John Holt, a printer who stood up to royal authority with ink and conviction. Holt was the publisher of The New-York Journal, one of the most important newspapers in colonial America. By the early 1760s, his paper had become a central platform for patriot sentiment in New York.

Holt reprinted fiery essays, letters, and articles critical of Parliament, royal governors, and the erosion of colonial self-rule. In 1770, he published a series of pieces defending the rights of New Yorkers to oppose British policies—particularly the quartering of troops and enforcement of unpopular trade laws.

Colonial officials accused Holt of sedition. He faced repeated threats of prosecution and mob retaliation, and some presses were destroyed in political violence. But Holt refused to back down, insisting that the press had a right—and duty—to speak out against unjust rule. His determination made him a target but also a hero to many.

Holt’s legal troubles were never fully resolved in court, but the threat of charges and censorship made clear how fragile civil liberties were under colonial authority. His case foreshadowed broader constitutional questions that would come to define the Revolution: Where did sovereignty lie? What limits could a government impose on speech? Could a subject critique the king?

When New York eventually joined the fight for independence, it did so on the shoulders of individuals like Holt, who believed that liberty must be defended not only on battlefields but also through words—and laws.

📸: Wikipedia

#PatriotsDay #AmericanRevolution #HSoftheNYCourts #NYSCourts #NYSJudges #NYSLawyers #NYSHistory #NYCHistory #NYHistory #NYLegalHistory #LegalHistory #AmericanHistory #History

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