(born Sept. 17, 1907, St. Paul, Minn., U.S.—died June 25, 1995, Washington, D.C.) U.S. jurist. He graduated with honours from St. Paul (now William Mitchell) College of Law in 1931, after which he joined a prominent law firm and became active in the Republican Party. He was appointed an assistant U.S. attorney general (1953) and named to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (1955), where his conservative approach commended him to Pres. Richard Nixon, who nominated him for chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1969. Contrary to the expectations of some, he did not try to reverse the liberal decisions on civil-rights issues and criminal law made during the tenure of his predecessor, Earl Warren. Under his leadership, the court upheld the 1966 Miranda v. Arizona decision, permitted busing as a means of ending racial segregation in public schools, and endorsed the use of racial quotas in the awarding of federal grants and contracts. Burger voted with the majority in Roe v. Wade (1973). Keenly interested in judicial administration, he became deeply involved in efforts to improve the judiciary's efficiency. He retired in 1986 and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1988.

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(born Sept. 17, 1907, St. Paul, Minn., U.S.—died June 25, 1995, Washington, D.C.) U.S. jurist. He graduated with honours from St. Paul (now William Mitchell) College of Law in 1931, after which he joined a prominent law firm and became active in the Republican Party. He was appointed an assistant U.S. attorney general (1953) and named to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (1955), where his conservative approach commended him to Pres. Richard Nixon, who nominated him for chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1969. Contrary to the expectations of some, he did not try to reverse the liberal decisions on civil-rights issues and criminal law made during the tenure of his predecessor, Earl Warren. Under his leadership, the court upheld the 1966 Miranda v. Arizona decision, permitted busing as a means of ending racial segregation in public schools, and endorsed the use of racial quotas in the awarding of federal grants and contracts. Burger voted with the majority in Roe v. Wade (1973). Keenly interested in judicial administration, he became deeply involved in efforts to improve the judiciary's efficiency. He retired in 1986 and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1988.

Learn more about Burger, Warren E(arl) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

• Hamburger, a sandwich
• Ground beef
• Patty, especially in the United States
• Veggie burger
• Burger diagram
• Die Burger, a South African newspaper
• Hamilton Burger, fictional district attorney

People

• Adolf Burger, Slovak memoir writer on Operation Bernhard
• Anna Burger, U.S. union leader
• Anthony Burger, U.S. musician and singer
• Anton Burger, concentration camp commandant
• Cody Burger, U.S. child actor
• Eugene Burger, U.S. magician
• Ida Burger, U.S. dance hall girl and prostitute
• Hermann Burger, Swiss writer
• Warren E. Burger, former Chief Justice of the United States
• David A. Levinson, American soap opera writer

Sportspeople

• Bernie Burger, Namibian cricketer
• Louis Burger, Namibian cricketer
• Sarel Burger, Namibian cricketer
• Pieter Burger, Namibian cricketer
• Jan-Berrie Burger, Namibian cricketer
• Schalk Burger, South African rugby player
• Fritzi Burger, Austrian figure skater
• Heinrich Burger, German figure skater
• Hubert Burger, Italian luger
• Todd Burger, U.S. American football player
• Karl Burger, German soccer player and coach
• Burger Lambrechts, South African shot putter

See also

• Burgers
• Berger
• Burgher
• Bürger
• Birger