Gloucester County Democrat., 1909-07-15
Van SYCKEL DEFENDS
new AMENDMENT.
Former Supreme Court Justice Writes
Strong Article Explaining How
4. They will Expedite and Sim
plify Litigation.

! posed amendments to the Constitution
upon which the people will vote on
September IA
The innumerable delays in law
suits, which so frequently end in their
dismissal without determining the
merits of the case, have aroused in
the public mind, not only in New Jer-
sey but in other States a growing de-
I sire to find some way in which justice
can be made expeditiously, and more
economically administered. All will
agree that delays in the prosecution of
a suit by the interposition of mere
technical defenses, and by objections
to mere form, and not to substance,
are unjustifiable, annoying and useless
and should not longer be permitted
to serve the purpose of suitors who
make them for the sole purpose of de-
feating just recovery by the injured
party.
Much of this delay, under our pres
ent judicial system, is to be attributed
to the system and not to the courts
The courts are bound to recognize and
apply settled rules to which the power
OF amendment does not apply, and
failure to observe them is error in
law
WILL EXPEDITE LITIGATION.
The proposed judiciary amendment,
which is to be submitted to the people
of this State in September, will, if
adopted, give the Justices of the Su-
preme Court the power, by rule of
court, to recaSt the procedure in suits.
so that avoidable delay will cease, and
the real cont oyersy be more speedily
disposed of. The responsibility for
any unnecessary delay which may
then occur will fall on the courts, and
it will be their duty to adopt such
change in procedure as will remedy
the defects, SO far as that can be eff
fected, without waiting for the slower
process of legislation
All delay will not be eliminated by
adopting the amendment, but there
will be much advance in that direction
: A notable instance is the provision
authorizing the justices of the Su-
preme Court to transfer at once a
cause which has been instituted in
the wrong court to it's proper tribunal
without subjecting the suitor to the
delay and expense which is now incl
dent to his mistake of his remedy.
: 1t was the intention of the trainers
OF our present judicial system that
the justices of the Supreme Court
should go to each county at stated
terms in every year to try every inn
portant case before jury, whereby,
prior to the last decade, suitors had
the benefit of judge of great expert
ence to try their cases.
EXPEDITES AND SIMPLIFIES.
The increase in the number of ap-
peals to the court of last resort has
made it necessary for the judges of
the Supreme Court to sit for SO much
of the time in the hearing of appeals
that they have been able to render but
little service in the trial of causes in
the counties.
The proposed judiciary amendment
Will restore to the several counties the
services of the Supreme Court JUS
tices.
There will be nine justices of the
Supreme Court who will not be mem
bers of the court of last resort, and
who will have ample time to go down
to the counties as formerly for circuit
duty.
Each county will have county
judge and the Supreme Court Justice
will be ex-officio a judge of the county
court.
by this provision the Interpretation
of the law in one county will not
differ from that in another county.
as the justices of the Supreme Court
will sit together frequently at Trenton
and confer upon doubtful questions.
"Uuder the single local judge sys-
tenn for each county, without any
nTf1 For f<r
more often be committed and con-
fiicting decisions will inevitably be
made, SO that the law will be left in
an unsettled condition
The justices of the Supreme Court,
who will be assigned to equity cases,
will also go down to counties as now,
and thereby all litigation in each
county will be disposed of in the
county, subject to one appeal to the
court of last resort sitting in Trenton.
The effect will be to combine, in
the administration of justice, sim
plicity, economy and dispatch, and to
secure in the local trial of cases the
services of judges of wide experience
and legal learning
BENEFITS CLIENTS.
Suitors do not in person follow
their cases to the court of last resort,
that is the duty of their counsel
That court must almost necessar-
lily sit in Trenton where all its records
to which reference is constantly made
are kept, and where the State main
tains large law library for the use
of court and counsel.
The statement has been made that
the judiciary amendment is a lawyers
measure, but it is obvious that if
member of the bar is mercenary he
will be. found in opposition to the
which will confer a ,bene-
fit upon the client only, and not upon
the lawyer.
"The members of the commission
examined with care the judicial sys-
TENS of many of our States, as well
as that of England, and they adopted
what they confidently believe will be
proven by experience, superior to any
hitherto formulated.
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