Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1911-05-24
OREGON SUPREME COURT DECISIONS
fu Text Published by Courtesy Of Turner Reporter Of the
Supreme Court

the law, or extent of mistake in IL.
application, should be regarded a,
immaterial?
In the trial of actions by iuries
speedy dispatch has been essential. in
order to lessen the expenses neces-
sarily incident to an inquiry as to the
facts involved. and this haste has pre-
cluded the careful examination nv tbe
trial court of legal principles or the
determination of the weight of con-
/ nlcting decisions. In view of such
acceleration, it is remarkable that
more judgments have not been re-
versed, for it has been the constant
practice of the attorney for n de-
feated party, when appealing. to as
sign as error every ruling of the
court opposed to which any authority
could be found or reason adduced
This court, like all other highest Judi
cial tribunals, has deemed it neces-
sary carefully to consider all errors
alleged to have been committed. and
If repetition of them in trial of 9th
er actions could not be universally
upheld as rules of law, reversals have
generally been followed, though the
Judgments complained of were essen
TALLY correct. This practice had be-
come so crystalized and firmly estab-
hshed in this state that it could not
well be changed without legislative
sanction and, in order to bring about
an alteration in the method of dis
posing OF causes on appeal, applica-
tlons were made several times to the
assembly for an enactment permit
ting atfirmances of judgments with
out writing more than mere memoir
andum opinions, whenever It an
peared from an examination of the
entlre record of cause that substan-
tiHi Justice had been administered he
lleving that by general statement of
the conclusions reached without ex-
pIress1ons committed to paper of the
legal principles involved no bad pre-
cedents could be established, but
every effort to obtain a law to that
effect proved unavailing,
The qualified electors OF Oregon.
recognizing the urgent necessity of a
ehange In the practice as indicated,
desiring to avoid the expenses which
new trials entail upon parties and
impose upon counties, expecting
speedily to put at rest issues that
have once been fairly tried and exer-
cising a measure of the power re-
served, ratified the amendment noted.
thereby adopting the practice that
had been solicited in vain from the
legislature, Giving to the amend
ment the liberal construction neces-
sary to effectuate the purposes indi-
Gated, we believe fair Interpretation
Of the altered oragnic law regulating
practice on appeal in this court de-
mands a careful examination of the
entire record Of the trial of an action
at law, including a transcript of the
testimony brought up for review and
any other material matter, and If the
judgment given is found to be such
as should have been rendered in the
case OF an affirmance of the determin-
alton of the lower court should fol-
low, without adverting to or COM
centing upon, in memorandum opin-
ion, any trivial errors that may have
been committed.
Where, however, it appears from
such examination that the judgment
of should be changed and
it can be determined what adjudica-
ton should have been igven, the pro-
per entry must be made in this court;
but if this cannot be done the judg-
ment should be reversed and the
cause remanded for new trial or
for such other proceedings as may
be necessary not inconsistent with
written opinion, stating the reasons
for the conclusion reached, which
should be handed down in all cases
of notifications or reversals.
Adopting these suggestions as a
rule, we are of the opinion, after a
careful consideration of all the mat
ters submitted on this appeal, that
the judgment should be affirmed, not
withstanding any error committed at
the trial, and it is so ordered.