Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Wallace, John William

John William Wallace served as reporter of decisions for the U.S. Supreme Court from 1863 to 1875. Wallace is noted for being the last reporter to privately publish decisions of the Court and for having his name on the spine of each volume. For example, the citation 87 U.S. (20 Wall.) 590 indicates that the decision is to be found on page 590 of volume 87 of United States Reports (the cumulative number of volumes, regardless of the reporter), which is volume 20 of those reports published by Wallace.

Wallace was born on February 17, 1815, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The son of a distinguished Philadelphia lawyer, Wallace graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1833. He studied law in his father's office but decided to devote himself to being a law librarian. In 1841 Wallace became the librarian of the Law Association of Philadelphia. He assumed his first reporting task in 1849, when he published the

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