John Forrest Dillon

John Forrest Dillon (December 25, 1831 – May 6, 1914) was an American attorney in Iowa and New York, a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court and a United States circuit judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Eighth Circuit. He authored a highly influential treatise on the power of states over municipal governments. Education and career Born on December 25, 1831, in Northampton, (then part of Montgomery County, now part of Fulton County), New York, Dillon received a Doctor of Medicine in 1850 from the University of Iowa. He read law in 1852. He entered private practice in Davenport, Iowa from 1852 to 1853. He was county attorney for Scott County, Iowa from 1853 to 1858. He was a Judge of the Iowa District Court for the Seventh Judicial District from 1858 to 1862. He was a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court from 1862 to 1868. Federal judicial service