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The Fuller Court (1888–1910)

Labor

Which justices dissented in the Lochner case?

Justices Oliver Wendell Holmes and John Marshall Harlan both authored dissenting opinions. Holmes criticized the majority for reading its own economic theories into the Constitution. He said the law should not be struck down unless it could be shown that it was irrational and did not further the state’s legitimate interest in health. Justice Harlan believed that the majority gave too short shrift to the state’s police powers and to the presumption that legislation is constitutional.



Women workers line up with baskets of dirty clothes at a commercial laundry. In Muller v. Oregon, the Fuller Court unanimously upheld a 10-hour work day limit for women workers. Chaloner Woods/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.