Which colonial lawyer defended smugglers and argued against writs of assistance and the Stamp Act, brother of Mercy Warren Otis?

• A. James Otis
• B. John Peter Muhlenberg
• C. Richard Henry Lee
• D. Jonathan Trumbull Sr.

Answer: (A)

James Otis Jr. was a Boston lawyer who challenged British controls on colonial life. He defended smugglers to resist oppressive trade enforcement and outspokenly opposed writs of assistance, which allowed broad searches for smugglers without specific warrants. He argued these general warrants violated the colonists’ rights under their charter and natural law, famously advocating that “a man’s house is his castle.” He also spoke against the Stamp Act, pushing back on taxation without representation and helping mobilize colonial opposition. His work and rhetoric helped shape early American resistance and influenced his sister, Mercy Otis Warren. This description matches James Otis Jr. rather than the other figures.