Why was Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. called the Great Dissenter?

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. was frequently called "The Great Dissenter" due to the brilliance of his dissenting opinions during his long tenure on the United States Supreme Court.1

While this moniker is widely recognized, it is important to note that the phrase can be misleading. It places a negative emphasis on his work, as his intellectual penetration and originality were equally evident in the opinions where he expressed or concurred with the majority view of the court. Holmes maintained a philosophy of judicial restraint, believing that the creation of laws is the responsibility of legislative bodies rather than the courts, and that the public has the right to choose their laws through elected representatives within constitutional limits.1