Born on February 14,1872,in Louisville,Clay County,Illinois,Williams attended the Willis district school,Louisville High School and then graduated in 1896 from Austin College in Effingham,Illinois.[2] He entered private practice in Louisville,Illinois from 1896 to 1915.[3] He was city attorney of Louisville,Illinois from 1897 to 1899.[3] He was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1899 to 1901.[3] He was Mayor of Louisville,Illinois from 1907 to 1909.[3] He was a prosecutor for Clay County from 1908 to 1915.[3] He became the owner and publisher of the Clay County Republican in Louisville,Illinois in 1920.[2] He moved to Harrisburg,Saline County,Illinois in 1926.[2]
While a judge,Williams' salary was reduced by the Legislative Appropriation Act of June 30,1932,which was part of Congress's efforts to economize the costs of government during the Great Depression. Williams sued the federal government,claiming that his salary could not be reduced because Section 1 of Article III of the United States Constitution forbids it. The Supreme Court ruled on Williams v. United States in 1933,deciding that the Court of Claims was an Article I,or legislative,court and that therefore Congress had the authority to reduce the salaries of the judges of the Court of Claims.[4]
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