Two Forms of Conservatism: Judicial Reasoning in New York Courts, 1860-1920 - Hardcoverby William E. Nelson (Author) The period between 1860 and 1920 inclusive of the Gilded Age and much of the Lochner era in legal history is typically regarded as the heyday of conservative jurisprudence. According to this received wisdom, conservative judges and much of the legal profession were on the side of big business and the rich. Judges in this period subscribed to "classical" legal thought, and it was only when this was supplanted by