Born in Prussia, Lehmann left home at the age of eight. After travels
with his family across the Midwest, he settled in Iowa, where he met
Epenetus Sears, a local judge who took him under his guidance. Sears
enabled Lehmann to attend college, from which he graduated in 1873. He
practiced law in Des Moines until his marriage. Afterwards, he moved to
St. Louis, where he became the president of the American Bar
Association. At various times he served as director of the Louisiana
Purchase Exposition of 1904, member of the Missouri Historical Society,
and as chairman of the Board of Freeholders. Lehmann was appointed
Solicitor General under George Wickersham by William Taft in 1910. He
quickly made a name for himself, winning cases involving anti-trust
suits. In later life he served as vice president of the American Academy
of Jurisprudence and general counsel for the U. S. Railway Commission.
He was an avid bibliophile.
