The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1902-1905, 1902-10-09
MORE JUDGES NEEDED.
Hon. $. j. Htlburn Contributes
"a Valuable Article on
Supreme Court.

In the Jacksonville Metropolis of
Oct. I'd, Hon S J Hilburn of this
city had the following strong article
Oh the all-absorbing question of the
proposed amendn to the constitu-
ton providing for additional judges
on the supreme bench:
In response to your recent favor,
requesting my views on the proposed
amendments to the state constitutions
for the relief of the suprt M court OF
Florida, beg to submit the follow ing:
| am heartily in favor of the pro-
posed amendments. The cOngested
condition of our supreme court is, in
my judgment, intolerable and very
detrimental to the interests of our
people and the state at large. 1t
greatly discourages persons having
meritOrious cases, and often leads 10
u compromise of valid claims at a
sacrifice, while it gives encourage
ment to litigant parties, whose
claims are without substantial merit,
and whose contentious are technical
and for delay. For example, it often
occurs that parties having merito =
ious cases enter suit-unmeritorous
defences are interpOsed. The plain
ifs win in the lower court. The de-
PENDANTS appeal to the supreme court
making appeal bonds as required y
law. At the time the bonds are ext =
cuted the bondmen are solvent.
The parties who appeal get super
|edeas which prevents the enforce
ment of the Judgment until the cases
ire decided by the supreme court.
From five to seven years thereafter,
the cases are decided; if decided in
favor of the plaintiffs in the lower
court, they proceed to collect the
Judgment. BY this time it is quite
often the case that the defendants
and their securities are insolVent,
and nothing can be realized on the
Judgments.
A FREQUENT OCCURRENCE.
On the other hand, if the defend
ants in the court below succeed III
reversing the Judgment of the lower
court on some technical ground
(Which often occurs) the cases are
remanded to the lower court for new
trial. BY this time the PLAINTIFF
witnesses may be dead or their
whereabouts unknown, and, cOnse-
luently, substantial justice is thwart-
ed, and the plaintiffs recover nothing.
Such cases are not simply imagin-
ary; they occur in every county in
the state, and it will be observed
that this condition of our supreme
court in each case mitigates against
the litigant party having meritor-
ious case, and is especially detrimen-
tai to people of limited means, be-
sides, if Il party is entitled to re-
covery he should have it without
chs protracted delay.
You know that there are people
who like to accuse Floridians of lack
Of energy and charge it against oul
Florida climate. TO sustain this &C
cusation, l have heard people refel
to our supreme court as evidence
OF course, this | did not approve, but
was helpless to prevent such in
| situations.
DETRIMENTAL CONDITION.
l do think that the condition o.
our supreme court is very detrimen'
tai to our state, and | am unable t.
see how any one who has the interest
of the state and its people at hear
can oppose these proposed amend
ments, or permit the question of ad
ditional expense to influence them il
the matter.
AS the commissioners will be dis.
charged after the appointment of the
additional justices, as provided il
the proposed amendments, and as
they are to receive the same salary
paid to the commissioners, there cal
be 70 question as to additional eX
pense, and there can be no reasOl
assigned, even on the line of stric
economy, in opposition to the pro
posed amendments, unless it shOulC
be the purpose of the legislature t.
abolish the commission.
WORK OF COMMISSIONERS.
The supreme court commissioner
cannot greatly facilitate the work o
the court, as they are without au
thority to decide case, and as thu
justices have to go over the cases 6nC
decide them, regardless of the
amount of work done thereon by the
commissioners. The supreme cour
commissioners are not relieving the
situation. They are doing all they
can, but it is impossible for them t.
facilitate the work Of the court. L
the proposed amendments should bt
ratified by the voters, our supreme
court will soon be relieved. The ca
Dacity of the court will then be al
most twice as great as the present
supreme court, and, consequently
almost twice as many cases will bt
decided in given time then, as now
as there will be division of the
court, with three justices to each di-
vision. having power separate anC
independent, to consider and decide
cases, excepting where there is di
vision Oh opinion among the justices
Whether these proposed amend
ments are Just as we would like tt
have them is not proper question
ut this time. If we vote them down
we shall have no relief, and the
present condition will continue and
possibly grow worse. The supreme
court of Tennessee once became al.
most as badly congested as our su.
preme court, but the people of that
State amended their state constitu,
ton, created another appellate court
which enabled the court to catch up
with it's business, and now, within
I 4 sr,A Al