Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-04-30
UNIFORM LAW MOVEMENT
By Frederic j. Haskfn

concerned largely in the completion OF
the proposed measures relating 10
partnerships and stock certificates.
The commission on uniform laws Is
not alone in the broad field OF work
in which 1t is laboring. It has given
such a wonderful impetus to the move
ment that there are dozens OF other
organizations enlisted in the same
cause. When the committee on vital
statistics set about to consider that
matter they found that the American
Medical association and also the Amer
lean Public Health association had O
committee working to the same end.
In addition to these the census bureau
was considering the same subject; be-
tween them all they were able to re-
mort a measure which met the approval
of all the orgniztions concerned.
Governor Curtis Guild has called
meeting of the New England governors
to consider uniform laws on five SUB
iects. The house of governors and the
conference called together by Presi-
dent Roosevelt met to consider UNIFORM
conservation laws. The National CIVIC
Federation has created a committee on
uniform state laws, ana Governor
Hughes has initiated movement TOT
uniform automobile laws in the terri
tory contiguous to New fork. he
governor of Louisiana has called
conference for the purpose OF securing
uniform laws on the question OF cniu
labor. In addition to all these move
ments the International TAX assocla-
ton meets in Louisville during the late
summer to consider the question OF
uniform tax laws
That the movement for uniform state
laws is an important one, all bear wit
ness who have Investigated the mat
ter. That 1t is q growing movement,
which will work great changes IN the
policies of the various legislative Dodies
of the country, is plain. But even WIN
everything that is desired or the iesis-
latures granted there will still pc
serious difficulty to overcome Wnich
II Is agreed there will be mucn trou-
ble. Judge w. o. Hart of Louisiana
chairman of the committee on pup
Ucitv Of the commission, referred TO
mat phase of the matter indirectly In
AN address before the Mississippi par
association. There are many STATES
which have statutes on given suplect
that are alike word FOR woru' re-
when the courts come to interpret
these statutes their construction Is
so different that In few years tnere
IS q line of decisions in eacn sthte
which makes the effect of the laws or
the several states as dinerent as ~
there had been no original uniIoruty'
THE American Bar association Is lhpor-
ing as assiduously to solve TINS propleil
as the commission on uni1orm laws 10
Ia boring for uniformity of legislation
LEGISLATURES are often imposed upon
and there is scarcely session OF any
legislative body which does not aiioW
some s'ioker' to steal through. Aaron
Burr was one of the first men 10 try
to pass off "joker" on an american
legislative assembly. lie wanted 70
esta blish a banking business IN new
York. and the legislature refused him
the charter he desired. Finally, an
apparently harmless bill with reference
10 the New York water supply was
introduced and passed. 1t was after
ward found to contain the very pank
charter Burr had been seeking. In
1904 the New York legislature was
gain n near-victim of even a more
dangerous "joker'' than the the one
Rurr had enacted. A meek-looking 1T
tie bill was offered granting certain
mower CORPORATION "time to commence
worl, and otherwise" 1t was after
ward found that the bill extended to
the power company the right OF emil
nent domain in every city and county
of the state, the same to be irrevocablc
and in perpetuity, the free use of every
public street and highway and use or
| the waters of Niagara Falls.
| To overcome the dangers OF such
| "iokers." most legislative assemblies
have employed high-salaried men to
wise all bills and to put them in shape
for legislative enactment. The num-
her of efforts to put "jokers" into law
| has been on the decline since the great
| moral awakening Of the present de-
cade, and even in congress. where the
| flood of bills is the worst in the world.
there are few "jokers" put into the
laws, and they are usually insignih-
| cant.
Perhaps the most widely advertised
effort for uniformity of legislation re-
| lates to the divorce question. There
are almost as many kinds OF law on
this subject as there are states in the
Union, and some of them are so framed
as to permit the divorce laws of other
states virtually to be set aside. In
some states the period of residence re-
quired Is so brief and the doctrine OF
what constitutes evidence so liberal
that almost anyone can get his case
into the courts of that state, and the
grounds for divorce are SO numerous
that the divorce comes more on the
ground of ability to pay for the pro-
ceedings than from any real cause. 1t
! is true that the supreme court de-
clared not long ago that New York
did not have to recognize a Connects
! cut divorce decree in a case where the
latter state did not acquire jurisdic-
tional control over the defendant; but
none of the states has sought to over
turn the action of the divorce courts of
other states because of this decision.
The model divorce law which was
drawn upon lines laid down by the
National Divorce congress has not
been meeting with the appreciation of
state legislatures that was expected.
New Jersey and Delaware are the only
stats which have as yet enacted 1t
into law.
Copyright 1909. by Frederic J. Haslfin)
| TOmOrrow-New Laws in Eject.