The United States Constitution is a remarkable document, embodying the fundamental principles of our government. It is a model of statesmanship, cooperation and compromise.
This year marks the 225th anniversary of the ratification of the Constitution. On March 12, 13 and 14, 2014, lawyers, jurists, educators and citizens from around the nation will gather in Atlanta at the Westin Buckhead Atlanta for a Celebration of the Constitution and the ratification. It is fitting that Georgia lawyers should lead in celebrating the Constitution. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the document. When the ninth state, New Hampshire, ratified the Constitution, it took effect as the governing document of the United States. When the Constitutional Convention convened in Philadelphia in 1787, thirty-four of the fifty-five members were students of the law, several of them from Georgia. In March of 1789, the Congress of the United States met for the first time under the United States Constitution. On April 30, 1789, George Washington was sworn in as the first President of the United States, and on September of 1789 the Supreme Court of the United States was established, both acts done under Constitutional authority.
