[1] He was born on January 28, 1876, in New York City to Mayer Lehman (d. 1897) and Babette Newgass and raised Jewish.

In 1939, he was elected Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals on the Democratic, Republican and American Labor tickets, and remained on the bench until his death in office.

(People v. Buchalter, 289 N.Y. 181) However, Judge Lehman, who was also affirming the conviction of the three, expressed some doubts in the verdict and stated that the errors and defects in the case were in fact numerous.

[4] In 1943 the United States Supreme Court granted Buchalter's petition to review the case and in a full opinion affirmed the conviction, 7–0, with two justices abstaining.

[7] Lehman died of a heart ailment on September 22, 1945, at his home on Ridge Street in Port Chester, New York.