 The court ruled for Benjamin 's clients , although on other grounds . Benjamin 's brief was widely reprinted , including by abolitionist groups . Historian Eli Evans , Benjamin 's biographer , does not believe that the argument in the Creole case represented Benjamin 's personal view ; rather , he was an advocate for his clients in an era when it was usual to write dramatically to distract attention from the weaker points of a case . Evans finds it remarkable and a testament to Benjamin that he could be elected to office in antebellum Louisiana , a slave society , after writing such words ; however , this may reflect more our present understanding of an antebellum slave society than their reality . 
