The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-08-12
GREAT WORK ACCOMPLISHED IN
STATE CLERKS OFFICE.
Records TO the Number Of 3S.OOO Re-
fled and Reindexed-A Remarka-
BILE Legal Machine.

-
with other steel office furniture. all of the
latest and most approved pattern and of
the best workmanship. have been put in
place i'm the different rooms belonging to
Clerk Robert A. Browns suite. This is the
second lot of steel furniture placed in the
clerks Office since Mr.. Brown took office.
Although possibly the attorneys and others
who have been visiting the office. with reg
ularity have not realized ii, the fact is.
nevertheless, that the office of the clerk OF
the Supreme and Appellate courts has been
completely revolutionized in the past few
years.
For a number of years the records of the
highest tribunal in the State were kept on
file in the town of Corydon. and
moved to the old Capitol i'm indianapolis.
When the old Statehouse gave way to the
present structure. while the new building
was being erected, the court records were
kept in temporary quarters on Capitol ave
nue.. near Washington street. When the
records were finally brought to the new
Capitol the file cases provided for them
were wholly inadequate to allow of syste-
matte filing. n part of the records were
kept i'm the basement room under The main
apartment of the clerks suite. and these
were inclosed i'm separate tin cases disposed
along undTcSSed boards.
Another part of the records rested in file
cases of styles as variegated as the colors
of Joseph's coat i'm a basement room on the
west side. opposite the clerks office. In
order to gain access to these papers a trip
had to be made through the first-foor cor
rldor OF the Capitol to a stairway at the
north end, and long Railways in the base
ment had to be traversed in addition. 1t
was almost a days journey to and from the
records of the office. BY the time Mr..
Brown entered the office all facilities for
films under the old plan had been practi-
cally exhausted. Because of lack of an APP
preparation for introducing a modern sys-
TEN of filing. records in pending cases
were being kept i'm wooden file cases. and
these documents, involving the life, liberty
and property of citizens of Indiana, were
constantly subject TO great hazard from
fire.
RE-FILED $4,000 DOCUMENTS.
Clerk Brown at once prepared a bill.
which was passed by the Legislature. pro-
viding for the purchase of new steel file
| cases and furniture for the protection of
| all current records and indexes, also for
setting apart rooms in the basement imme-
diately under the clerks suite and for the
construction of a fire-proof stairway con-
Meeting the upper rooms with those be-
meath. The Encouragement OF the old file
cases and the Introduction OF new ones
made necessary the transferring and re-
office.
81 A a large nSmber Of territorial records are
gether with the records filed since the
adoption of the Constitution in 1916. have
now reached the number of $4,000. TIL re-
filing and re-indeXing OF these records has
been a stupendous task. but it has been
performed by MIR. Browns office force with
out extra compensation from the State.
A striking feature Of the Few furniture
in the clerks office is the steel counter.
with its granite top and base. which is
declared to be one of the best that has
ever been constructed for a public office.
IL has all tho mCGern conveniences for the
| quick and systematic handling of office
| blanks. indexes. dockets and records. The
ME cases are of the very latest and best
pattern. and their workmanship and finish
is such that they are expected to be az
day OF their installation.
| The arrangement of the records i'm this
office IS now. for the first time in the his
tory of the State-or. at least, for the first
time since the occupancy Of the new Cap
itoi-in accordance with a system that will
be permanent SO long as the business of the
higher courts is conducted along the lines
in vogue at present.
The shifting OF the Office from vincennes
to CorydOn. from Corydon to the old State
house. from the old Statehouse TO tenn
porary quarters and thence to the new
building, without providing adequate filing
facilities, left the records i'm an unsys-
.tematic and chaotic condition for many
years. There are frequent calls on the
| part of the courts and members of the bar
fer old records. and formerly il took from
thirty minutes to half "A day to find one.
Now any record can be found within five
minutes, and when brought back can be
replaced quite a. readily.
HANDLING NEW CASES.
Mr.. Brown does not take any especial
| credit for the remarkable transformation
that has been wrought i'm his Office. He
realizes that previous incumbents of the
office have been prevented from making
improvements by lack of an appropriation.
| Not only have extensive changes been
made in the matter of systematically filing
| old records, but the same course has been
| pursued in reference to causes pending be-
| fore the courts. This part OF the work Of
| the clerks office is i'm charge of Chief Dep
uty George IL. Bachelor. Since the new
| rules OF the higher courts were adopted in
| 1900 Sir. Batcheio- has rearranged all pend
ing cases according to the dates OF their
submission. and all such cases have been
| entered on a trial docket in each court.
and cases that have been advanced on
order of the court have been entered on
what il termed All advance docket.
The clerk now keeps four dockets for
| each court in addition to the general issue
| dCCketS. The cases are arrange on these
dockets in such q manner that they may
passed or overlooked. Under the present
arrangement the clerk keeps seven more
| dCcketS than were kept under the old rules.
| The rule requiring records and papers in
| cases to he kept on file after the time has
expired for fling briefs does away with
the practice which was once quite general.
| of attorneys holding records a long time
and thus delaying. the decision of cases.
4 Cases are now taken up and decided in
| their proper order.
There has been a constant and marked
| increase in The work of the two higher
| courts within tn past few years. In May.
| 1891, there were % cases pending in the
| Supreme Court and 267 in the Appellate
Il Court. In MAY. 1875. IntI0 were DCfQlIS III
the Supreme Court 5Si and in the Appellate
| Court 402 cases. In May. 1899. the Supreme
Court had 100 pending, cases and the APP
| pellate Court 4l3. In May, 1900. there were
pending in the Supreme Court 5IS cases
and I'm the Appellate Court BIG. In May,
1901. after the passage of the law allowing
| certain cases 20 be transferred from the
| Supreme To the Appellate Court. the pend
ing cases in the former court numbered
| only 33S. while tFcse in the Appellate Court
numbered 547.
PROGRESS OF A CASE.
Mr.. Bachelor gave an interesting ex-
PLANTATION OF the various steps i'm the pass
age of a case through one of the higher
courts. When a case * filed in the Su-
preme or Appellate Court" ne said. the
record is marked fled as of that date and
the case is thereupon entered on the issue
docket of the court I'm which IL is filed: also
upon the clerks submission docket. From
date when the case Is submitted. which is
usually thirty days after II il filed. When
q case ~ submitted all subsequent proceed
ings date from the day of submission. the
briefs being required To be ON file within
a certain time after submission. After
the briefs have been filed the case is en-
tered on the trial docket of the court ac-
cording TO the date Of its submission. and il
then taken up and decided i'm its proper
order. If II Is x criminal case il i en-
tered on the advance oocket instead of
the trial docket. The Supreme Court and
each division Of the Appellate Court has "A
trial docket kept 10y the clerk in which
docket in which sre entered all criminal
eases and such civil eases as IN. court
chooses 10 have advanced from then regu-
lar order on account of some emergency