Born in
Albany, New York on October 7, 1782, he was the son of
William and Catherine Duer.
William Alexander Duer was his brother, and his maternal grandfather was
William Alexander, Lord Stirling. He was the father of
William Duer (1805–1879), who also served in Congress. John Duer entered the army at age 16, but after two years left to
read law in the office of
Alexander Hamilton. He was admitted to the bar, began a practice in
Orange County, New York, and moved to
New York City in 1820, where he became a highly successful insurance lawyer. He was a delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1821. In 1825 he was appointed with
Benjamin F. Butler and
John Canfield Spencer to the commission that revised the state statutes, and he was especially active in preparing the first half of the work. From 1828 to 1829 he was
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. He was elected an associate judge of the New York Superior Court in 1849, and on the death of Judge
Thomas J. Oakley in 1857, Duer became chief justice. Duer died on
Staten Island on August 8, 1858, and was buried at
Trinity Churchyard Cemetery in
Manhattan. ==Works==