The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1914-06-11
BY THE GEORGIA
BAR ASSOCIATION
COMMITTEE WILL so RECON-
MEND AT ANNUAL MEET
ING NEXT WEEK
ABOLISH ALL CITY COURTS
That is One of the Important Recon-
mendations to be Made-Give Each
County a County Court With Six
Jurors Instead of Twelve.
ABOLISH ALL CITY COURTS

The meeting of the Georgia Bar
Association at Typee Island next
week promises to be one Of the most
Interesting sessions that organiza-
tion has held in years. Among 9th
er things the Bar Association is to
recommend some sweeping reforms
in the present judicial system of the
state At the last meeting of the
association a commission was ap-
pointed headed by Judge Andrew J.
Cobb of Athens, to submit plan
to embody the views of the associa-
tion. This outline has been ccmplet-
ed by the commission and will be
presented to the association at it's
Tybee meeting. The plan as agreed
upon, and which, if adopted by the
association, will be urged at tie
session of the legislature which con-
venes this month, is as follows:
Abolish all city courts; all elect
i've justices of the peace; give the
court of appeals exclusive appellate
jurisdiction in criminal cases, and
transfer all civil. jurisdiction to the
supreme court
This leaves vacances to be filled as
follows:
Have superior courts hold quarter
ly sessions Cor oftener), in all coun-
ties, and render judgment at the
first term where nu rssuable defence
is filed. Where business requires SUI
perior court may be divided into di-
visions and additional judges provid-
ed for as in the case of Fulton coun-
ty.
Have acounty judge to hold court
monthly at the county site with iu-
risd&ctfon to try misdemeanor Ind
civil cases involving not over $500,
with juries also Of six instead OF
twelve. He shall also hold court
monthly at each militia district
court ground with same Jurisdiction
as now given by law to justices of
the peace. The notary public and ex
offieio justice of the peace of the
district shall be ex-off1cio clerk of
this court in his district with au-
thority to issue all papers as now
but no authority, except to hold
courts of inquiry.
There shall be no jury trial in any
court except it be demanded in orig
inal petition or answer.
Cases may be taken by certiorari
land only by that method) from
courts held by the county Judge to
the superior court therein shall be
final;-unless judge of the superior
court shall certify that some consti-
tutional question is involved which
was properly raised in the pleadings
at the trial.
Civil cases from the superior court
shall be taken to the Supreme court
and criminal cases 10 the Court OF
Appeals, as under the present sys.
tenn.
The advantages OF this scheme
are: =?
II The system will be absolutely
uniform throughout the State (except
for the lower courts as recently ere
ated for Atlanta
There shall be but one trial and
one review of each case Except as
tn constitutional qnes@ons).
Judgments may be obtained as
speedily in the superior courts as
now in the CITY courts and there
will be a general expediting of bus
mess by reason Of this. and bv elm
mating many jury trials which take
fully twice as long as trials by the
ju3ge alone.
Making judgment of the super.
Tor courts fined in cases originating
in lower courts, ang giving all Grim.
inal business to the Court of Appeals
would probably reduce the number
of cases going to the snpreme court
sufficiently to enable that court to
keen I'D with the business as well