District: 2
Hometown: Ardmore, Oklahoma; Carter County
Birthplace: Juliet, Tennessee
Spouse: Gertrude Whitaker Crumpton Brett
Children: Howard Wayne Brett; Rutherford Henderson Brett; John Anderson Brett; Edward Carmack Brett; Benjamin Whitaker Brett; Thomas Marshall Brett; Robert Williams Brett; Rebecca Ward Brett; Gertrude Olivia Brett; Betty Brett (Mrs. Frank Ogden); Mary Dale Brett
Rutherford Brett attended Carson College in Jefferson City, Tennessee, 1886-1888, and studied law and theology at Cumberland University, 1888-1890. He was admitted to the Bat in Lebanon, Tennessee in 1902.
In 1902, he and his wife moved to Washita County, Oklahoma. He was Washita County Attorney from 1907-1910. Brett was identified as the attorney on nearly every important case in Washita County for 14 years. When Judge Henry Furman died in June, 1916, Brett was appointed by Governor R. L. Williams to the Court of Criminal Appeals.
In 1917, Judge Brett was named to the Oklahoma Supreme Court and served as a judge until 1919. At that time he moved from Cordell to Ardmore and established a law firm, Brett & Brett. He was active in the Baptist Church and the Masonic Lodge. Rutherford Brett is the father of John Anderson Brett and Thomas Marshall Brett who both later served as judges on the Court of Criminal Appeals.