The American JudiciaryBaldwin, Simeon E. (Simeon Eben)
History
The American Judiciary
Baldwin, Simeon E. (Simeon Eben)
Courts -- United States; Law -- United States -- History
Our courts of last resort generally have before them a printed
statement of the doings in the lower court which they are asked
to review, and a printed argument from each party to the appeal.
Oral arguments are also usually heard, except in a few States
where the press of business renders it practically impossible
except in cases of special importance. Such a press occurs
mainly in the largest States, but exists also in some whose
Constitutions make it easy and over-cheap for every defeated
litigant to carry his case up to the highest court.
In the Supreme Court of Georgia no costs exceeding $10 can be
taxed against the unsuccessful party; and it has had eight
hundred cases in one year upon its docket. In most States he has
substantial costs to pay. These mainly are to meet the expense
of printing the record sent up from the court below. A single
case will sometimes fill a volume or even a set of volumes,
particularly in equity causes in the federal courts, in which all
the testimony is generally written out at length. The appellant
has to pay for the printing in the first instance, but
ordinarily, if he succeeds, the other party will be obliged to
reimburse him. The cost involved is occasionally several
thousand dollars.
The party taking the appeal must file a paper stating his grounds
for it separately, distinctly, clearly and concisely. There is a
temptation to include all that can be thought of, good, bad and
indifferent; and whether this is done or not will depend largely
on the opinion which the lawyers have of the ability of the
court.
In the smaller States the judges have time to enable all to study
each case with care. In the largest ones it is not uncommon to
assign every case on the docket, in advance of the argument, to a
particular judge. He is expected to give it special attention
with a view to reporting his conclusions upon it to the court,
and, should they be approved in consultation, to writing out its
opinion subsequently. The assignment for a term of court is not
infrequently made in the order in which the docket (or printed
list of cases to be heard) is made out, the chief justice taking
the first case, the senior associate justice the second, and so
on. At the next term the same practice will be pursued, except
that the justice next in seniority to the one who had the last
case under the previous assignments will now take the first case
on the new list, and the next junior justice the second.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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