The New York herald., 1922-04-16
Third OF TENANTS
| IN Court IN 3 YEARS
Municipal Court Handles
Tremendous Calendar of
Small Cases.
ACTIONS SIMPLIFIED
Aim Is to Make 1t Easy for
Everybody to Be His
Own Lawyer.
QUARTERS OvERCROWDED
Justices and Clerk Thresh
Rent Law Business Without
Extra Facilities.
~ WIN. M,MunTR1E sPEER.

New York The Municipal Court. also
called the District Court, is where
four fifths of the current litigation or
New York city begins and ends. Pro-
ceedings to dispossess tenants, to col
lect bills and wages and small damage
suits make an enormous bulk of liti-
cation.
Tn 1921 there were 361,345 actions
and proceedings commenced in the
Municipal Court. OF these 1927
were summary proceedings against
tenants.
According to the census New York
city had on January /, 1920, a popula-
tion of 5,620,04S. Also, according to
the census, 1.115,670 were married
women and 1,143,643 were married
men. The slight excess of married
men over married women is probably
due to men who live in New York city
but whose families live elsewhere.
Assuming that one-tenth of these
families own their own houses the
otker million families are tenants.
Many Summoned to Court.
In the Municipal Court there were
1927 summary proceedings in 1921,
74,15S in 1920 and 96,623 in 1919. I'm
less the same tenant was the defend
ant in rent proceedings more than
once. almost a third of the total ten
ants in New York have been sum-
moned to court within three years.
The special rent laws were passed
by the Legislature in April and Sep
tember, 1920. Tie summary proceed.
ings for 1920 were 10000 fewer than
in 1919, but in 1921 there was a jump
Of $4,000 from 1919 or $4,000 from 1920
Assuming that the average family
or household is five persons, a popula-
ton of a million and a half has been
summoned to the Municipal courts
within three years. This is half the
population of the whole United States
at the time of the Revolutionary War.
Itris more than the population OF
many SD ties. more than the whole
population of any other city in the
United States except Chicago and
Philadelphia.
1t would seem that the people of
New York are litigicus and that a cer-
tain element of them enjoy litigation.
The rent cases are not half the busi-
ness of the Municipal Court. TIE
other half are suits for unpaid bills
wages. damages and broken contracts.
Less than half these cases are tried.
Some are abandoned and some are
settled. Frequently tenants who did
not pay their rent stay as long as they
can and then move out without wait
ing for the judgment of TIE court and
the marshal to come and dispossess
them. There are constantly fifty or
sixty thousand cases pending.
A great deal has been said and writ
ten about the delays in the adminis-
tration of criminal justice, but there
were only 5,314 indictments found in
1921 by all the Grand Juries in New
York county and 4,421 indictments
were disposed Of. That is, there are
moro than six:y times as many actions
and proceedings in the Municipal
Court as in the Court of General Ses-
sions. More than sixty times as many
people are directly affected by the
municipal courts as by the action of
the Grand Juries.
1t is an enormous volume of law
business, and the wonder is how 1t is
accomplished.
Forty-seven justices comprise the
bench of the municipal court. They
sit at the various district court houses
in the boroughs of Manhattan, the
Bronx. Queens and Richmond. Most
of these courts have several justices
aSCirppd tn the Ga mo ranrf
Division of the Work.
One justice win hear motions: an
other justice and the clerk call the
trIol calendar. From this calendar
cares are sent to the respective trial
justices. 1t is not uncommon for the
court to have 400 or 500 cases on one
days trial calendar and to make some
dispositis.l of all the cases that the
parties are ready to try.
The rumber OF trials has increased
from 23.A46 in 1919 to 117SS9 in 1921,
an increase of more than 400 per cent.
While the total OF actions and pro-
cecdings has increased about half the
number OF cases tried has more than
quadrupleT.
There are about $50 court days in
the year, counting the summer court
days, wren the cor--s do not work to
ibei. fun capacity. If every Justice
ret every trial day and spent all his
time trying cases this would mean an
average of ten cases day tried b.
each justice.
There are few jury trials in the Mu-
nicpal Court. Either party can have
n jury trial by paying for It. lie can
have six jurors, or by paying double
Zee he can have twelve Jurors. Since
the jury trial costs more and takes
longer II is not often called for. al
though in the rent cases tenants ave
been recently demanding jury trials
on the suppostion that jury. being
composed OF rent payers, will be more
favorable to the tenant.
The great increase in the volume of
business in the Municipal Court has
been handled without increase in the
number OF justices or clerks. This is
a commentary on the remedy proposed
for clearing up tie calendars Of the
Supreme Court and, OF the Court Of