If I am absent during the discussion of a subject, and consequently know not on which side to vote, I always look at [him], for I am sure if I vote with him I shall vote right. 

– Fischer Ames of Roger Sherman

Most Americans who know Roger Sherman at all know him only as a trivia fact. He is the only man to have signed all four founding documents: the Continental Association, the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution. Beyond that, he fades into the background. Perhaps this was inevitable for a man who lacked the charisma of a history book hero. John Adams called him “the reverse of grace.” But Sherman had the most vital trait of a good lawyer: judgment – and he earned his colleagues’ respect for it. That alone should earn him a closer look from his fellow members of the bar.

A Lawyer

Sherman was born in 1721 in Newton, Massachusetts. After his father died, Sherman became responsible for providing for the large family. They moved to New Milford, Connecticut, arriving in 1743. His entry into the law was almost accidental. A friend of Sherman’s became involved in a legal dispute. As a favor, Sherman went to see a lawyer about it. Ever diligent, he made some notes about the case, which he brought along. They were so detailed that the lawyer said Sherman should join the bar himself. So he did, passing the Connecticut bar in 1754.

From there, Sherman’s legal and political careers rose in tandem. He was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives where he served from 1755 to 1758 and 1760 to 1761. He also held successive judicial posts. First, he served as justice of the peace. Next, he served on the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, the precursor to Connecticut’s modern Supreme Court. He finally served as a Justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut, a role he would hold until nearly the end of his life.

A Delegate

In 1774, Sherman continued his political service as delegate to the First Continental Congress. There he signed the Continental Association, a non-importation and exportation agreement designed to pressure the British Parliament into addressing colonial Americans’ grievances. But the Association failed to reconcile America and Britain, and Connecticut sent Sherman as its representative to the Second Continental Congress.

At the Continental Congress Sherman received perhaps the highest tribute to his judgment. Thomas Jefferson described Sherman as “a man who never said a foolish thing in his life.” Another peer said, “Roger Sherman had more common sense than any man I ever knew.” A member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, Sherman signed that document on July 4, 1776, marking the birth of the United States.

A Grueling Docket

Sherman then served his country diligently throughout the War of Independence. Not only was he on the Committee of Five, but also the Board of War and Ordinance, and the committee that drafted the Articles of Confederation. It was a grueling docket, and Sherman would regularly work from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. to meet these demands. After the war was won, Sherman was one of the signers of the Articles on behalf of Connecticut.

The Articles proved a failure, creating a national government that was too weak to govern. Sherman went to Philadelphia to draft a replacement. His actions at the Constitutional Convention shaped the Constitution as it exists today. Sherman actively, and often successfully, opposed James Madison’s plan for a stronger national government. By Madison’s count, Sherman made 138 speeches, more than all but three other delegates. It was also Sherman who introduced the “Connecticut Compromise,” which provided for proportional state representation in the House of Representatives and equal state representation in the Senate. When the work was done, Sherman signed – the only man to have contributed to every one of America’s founding documents.

Sherman’s public service did not end with the Constitutional Convention. He would serve in both the House of Representatives, and the Senate. After a lifetime of service to his country, he died in 1793, at the age of 72. The American Revolution needed fiery heroes like Patrick Henry and John Adams. But it also needed men capable of the calm, practical judgment every client needs from its lawyer. For that, Americans can be grateful that at every step of the Founding, they had the counsel of a man “who never said a foolish thing in his life.”

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Editor’s note: The author is an attorney in the New York office of Glenn Agre Bergman & Fuentes.