Jeremiah Chase

Jeremiah Townley Chase (May 23, 1748 – May 11, 1828) was an American lawyer and jurist from Annapolis, Maryland. He served as a delegate for Maryland in the Continental Congress of 1783 and 1784, and for many years was chief justice of the state’s court of appeals.

Chase was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Richard and Catherine Chase. When both his parents died in 1757 he was adopted by his uncle Thomas Chase, who was the Anglican rector of St. Paul's parish in Annapolis. (St. Paul's later became part of the American Episcopal Church.) His uncle also took over his education as he had done earlier for his own son, Samuel Chase.

When Jeremiah Chase was a young man, he followed his cousin Samuel Chase to Annapolis. He read law in Samuel's office and was admitted to the bar of Anne Arundel County in 1771. Chase established a practice in both Annapolis and Baltimore, which he continued in Annapolis until 1791 with interruptions for public service. He never went into practice with his cousin but they made several appearances in court for the same clients, and a few as opponents. There were several young men who studied law with both cousins, especially when one was out of town. This list of men included Roger B. Taney who was later Chief Justice of the United States.

In 1773 Chase was elected to the Colonial House of Delegates. In 1774 he joined the Committee of Correspondence for Baltimore and was elected to the revolutionary Annapolis Convention. In 1776 he attended the state's Constitutional Convention for Anne Arundel County. Under the new constitution he was elected to the House of Deputies.

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