The Opelousas courier., 1898-06-04
The New Constitutions.
From the Daily Monitor.

be appointed by the governor Us
heretofore, but in case of a va
cancy in the office of Chief Justice
the Senior Justice in point of
term of service is to be cx-otli-
clio Chief Justice.
The Supreme Court is now Civ
Ell such original jurisdiction as
may be necessary to enable it to
determine questions of fact affect
ing its own jurisdiction in any
case pending before it, or it may
remand the case in order hat the
necessary evidence may be taken
in the lower Court to enable it to
determine the~fegen of juris-
diction.
The Supteme Court given
exclusive Jurisdiction of affeeef-
ters touching% misconduct of
members of tie Bar with power
to disbar under such rules as the
Court itself may adopt.
Dissentingaor concurring opin-
ions will no longer be published
in the reports.
Judges of all courts are requir-
ed to refer to the law and the
reasons on which their judgment
Is founded, and hereafter service
of citation shall not be waived
nor Judgment confessed by any
document under private signature
executed prior to the maturity of
the obligation sued ON.
The provision giving the court
power to hear evidence to deter
mine its own jurisdiction in
doubtful casas is a wise provision
shown TO be necessary by expert
ence and it was doubtless suggest
ed by the judges of the Supreme
Court.
The section giving that Court
exclusive jurisdiction over matters
touching professional misconduct
of lawyers will tend to raise the
standard of the professional priv
ileges to do dishonest and unpro-
fessional acts.
The prohibition against pub
fishing dissenting opinions is a
good one. Their publication swell
the volumns Of the reports and
takes away from the decisions
rendered the authority and con-
clusiveness with which they ought
to be received.
The prohibition against waiver
of citation and confessions of
judgment in the face of the note
or obligation executed by the
debtor has come to be very pre-
valent and has given rise to so
much abuse and advantage being
taken of the ignorant debtor class
that the Convention wisely de
termined to stop it.
Another good feature in the
new Constitution is, that the Leg
islature is required by law to pro-
vide for the interchange of Dis
trict Judges. 1t will be q most
SOLITARY thing to have a n%on-resi-
dent Judge occasionally holding
terms of court outside of his dis
trict.
Again, under the old Constitu-
ton if a district judge was sick or
disabled from any cause whatever
from holding his court, there was
no provision made for such aeon
tingency, and the term of court
necessarily failed. Now, how
ever, any Justice of the Supreme
Court may designate and appoint
any judge of any other district to
discharge all of the judicial duties
Of the Judge so disabled during
disability.
Again, District Judges now
have authority to try all misdea-
nors without a jury, and to try
cases punishable at hard labor by
a jury of five. And cases neces-
sarily punishable at hard labor by
a jury of twelve, nine concurring
being authorized to render a ver
dict. This provision will enor-
mously facilitate and cheaper the
administration Of the criminal law
and is one of the most important
and far reaching reforms effected
by the new Constitution.
Another important change in
the judiciary system is the provi-
sion requiring Grand Juries to
consist of sixteen members, nine
Of whom concurring will find an
Indictment. The Grand Jury is to
serve for six months, two to be
drawn annually. 1t is not intend
ed that the Grand Juries shall be
continually in session but to be
ready to be called into service at
any time that the state of the
criminal business required it to be
done. This lisa necessary feature,
considering that there is to be no
more terms of the District Court,
but that it is to be in continuous
session for Ten months each year.
No very material change is
made in the legislative depart
ment.
In the executive department
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