The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1923-09-27
Supreme Court

Washington The Supreme Court
is making no material progress in
clearing it's docket. When it meets
October l to begin its next term it
will find substantially as many cases
awaiting consideration as year ago.
This condition is not due to lack of
effort, for no matter how fast the
court speeds up it's disposition of
cases the accumulation upon its doc
ket keeps pace. The real trouble, in
the opinion of attorneys practicing be-
fore the court, is that the appellate
jurisdiction of the highest tribunal is
sought by many litigants whose con-
troversies do not present questions
should not be permitted to consume
it's time.
Congress has from time to time at
tempted to solve the problem by legis-
lation, but laws are slow in reforming
human nature. AS long as the court
is open to those who would use it to
delay the execution of sentences or
take a last desperate chance to have
an adverse decision reserved, it's doc
kets will be crowded with cases in
/ which an appeal is asked merely to
postpone the inevitable day when the
prison doors must close on the petit
toner, or when judgment must be
paid.
Owing to the congestion of business
case filed today will not be reached
by the court for argument within 18
months unless it is included in that
comparatively small number advanced
for hearing out of turn. Although
substantially 100 more cases were dis
posed of last term than in 1918, the
court docketed during that period so
more than in 1918, and had at the end
of the term undisposed of only 40
less cases than it had at correspond
| ing period five years ago, The COM
parative insignifcance of this inroad
into the accumulation of business is
evident when it is known that the
number of cases annually docketed is
! in excess of 1000. Should the court
be able to- maintain the progress made
45 years before its docket is cleared.
1t apparently was the original inten-
ion that the time of the court would
be given to the decision of constitu
tional quesrl ons ana legal controver-
sizes of national Importance, and the
establishment of presidents in dis
puted features of new laws. But when
| Congress attempted to assist in that
design by restricting the causes in
which lower courts could grant ap-
peals, it really opened new avenue
for overcoming 1t gave the court
discretion to itself to determine when
| it would grant appeals in those cases
in which appeals were not granted by
the lower, courts, so that now endless
periods of time are consumed hearing
the petitions of litigants whose con-
/ tentions are found in the end to be of
insufficient general Importance to war
rant the supreme court in reviewing
them.
The court cannot determine whether
any particular application asking an
appeal under a writ of certiorari pos
sesses sufficient merit to warrant it
without an examination of the papers
submitted. Each Justice therefore
must prepare himself to discuss the
case at weekly conference, giving to
each application substantially as much
time as would be required to dispose
of case by a formal decision. Those
cases which the court does decide TO
hear must then be studied second
Cine when they come up for argu-
ment and decision.
The cases which the court can be re-
CURED to decide only after it first has
consented to consider them, cover viz
tually every question ever made the
subject of litigation, Aside from GRIM
iinal and civil cases brought solely for
delay, the class of cases making the
most impossible demands upon the
time of the court are those arising