Law Day 2005

May 4, 2005

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What Is Law Day?

A national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law. Law Day underscores how law and the legal process have contributed to the freedoms that all Americans share.

How Did Law Day Begin?

1957-American Bar Association (ABA) President Charles S. Rhyne, a Washington, D.C., attorney, envisions a special day for celebrating our legal system.

1958-President Dwight D. Eisenhower establishes Law Day to strengthen our great heritage of liberty, justice, and equality under law.

1961-May 1 is designated by joint resolution of Congress as the official date for celebrating Law Day.

When Is It Celebrated?

May 1 is the official date, but in fact Law Day can be celebrated on any date. It often becomes Law Week (or Weeks!) as Law Day planners reach out to a broad segment of the community.

How Is It Celebrated?

Law Day programs are designed to help people understand how law keeps us free and how our legal system strives to achieve justice. Law Day is celebrated in schools across the country and in programs designed to reach the adult public. Thousands of programs are conducted every year.

Who Puts On Law Day?

Law Day is often planned by state and local bar associations, courts, schools and governmental agencies in communities throughout the country. Often these groups work together to reach the largest possible audience.

What Is This Year's Theme?

The American Jury: We the People in Action. This theme reminds us that trial by jury was one of the rights American fought for in seeking our independence. The Founders saw juries as a cornerstone of freedom, a way for the people to resist the tyranny of an unjust government.

Why Is This Theme Important to People?

The jury is the embodiment of democracy. We entrust juries--small bodies of ordinary men and women--with decisions that involve the liberties and property of defendants. In doing so, we confirm our faith in the ability of people to make just and wise decisions, and that is the very definition of democracy.

"I'm no idealist to believe firmly in the integrity of our courts and in the jury system" that is no ideal to me, it is a living, working reality...A court is no better than each...of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the [people] who make it up."
--Atticus Finch in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird
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Last modified: 4/29/2005