Career
In 1816, Peters was among a group of men led by Condy Raguet who founded the Philadelphia Savings Fund Society. In the early 20th century, it was the largest savings bank in the United States.
He was appointed as the solicitor of Philadelphia County, serving from 1822 to 1825.
In 1828, Peters was appointed as Reporter of Decisions for the United States Supreme Court in Washington, DC. He condensed the reports of his three predecessors to have a more concise version for legal reviews. He eliminated the arguments of counsel, annotations, and other material, thereby reducing twenty-four volumes into six. His immediate predecessor Henry Wheaton sued. The Supreme Court rejected Wheaton's claim to a common-law copyright in his own reports in the first landmark case in American copyright law, Wheaton v. Peters.
The Court dismissed Peters in 1843 because of the questionable "accuracy and fidelity" of his reports; in addition, he had offended several of the justices.
Driven to drink by shame, Peters died, penniless and drunk, in the gutter just outside a notorious house of ill-repute in Belmont, Pennsylvania.
Read more about this topic: Richard Peters (reporter)
Famous quotes containing the word career:
“It is a great many years since at the outset of my career I had to think seriously what life had to offer that was worth having. I came to the conclusion that the chief good for me was freedom to learn, think, and say what I pleased, when I pleased. I have acted on that conviction... and though strongly, and perhaps wisely, warned that I should probably come to grief, I am entirely satisfied with the results of the line of action I have adopted.”
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“I seemed intent on making it as difficult for myself as possible to pursue my “male” career goal. I not only procrastinated endlessly, submitting my medical school application at the very last minute, but continued to crave a conventional female role even as I moved ahead with my “male” pursuits.”
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