Imperial Valley press., 1935-07-05

happen for the time being to be
chairman of that committee.
While l agree entirely with the
conclusions expressed in your edi-
torial. will you permit me to point
out that I think you are making
the fundamental error of most lay
men in supposing that the trouble
with the administration of justice
is in the written law of procedure,
and that the rules of procedure
must be simplified While I am
not engaged in criminal practice, I
believe our criminal, and l know
our civil, procedure as written is
simple and direct. 1t is true that
up to date there has been one
glaring defect, the inhibition which
has existed until recently against
a judge commenting on evidence
or the credibility of witnesses. But
the second Lamson trial occurred
after that inhibition had been re-
moved.
The great and fundamental cause
of the defects in the administra-
ton of civil justice in this country
is the method in which the laws
are administered. In your editorial
comments, you call attention to the
| expeditions manner in which Grim
inal justice is administered in Eng
land, and from what 1 can learn,
believe England more nearly ap-
proacheS perfection in the admin
1stration of civil and criminal JUS
lice than has been obtained by any
other country.
Cites English Method
The cause however, of the per-
fection of English justice is not in
the difference of procedure but in
the fact that the law, substantive
/ and procedural, is administered by
trained eXperts-I am referring not
alone to the judges but to the bar
rlsterS and counSellorS who conduct
trials.
My knowledge OF the English
system has been obtained only
from reading. and conversations
with British barristers. Hence, its
accuracy is probably only approx
innate.
AS 1 understand the English sys-
tenn, no one takes part in any i'm
portant trial, either as counsel or
! Judge, who is not of proven ability
and integrity. In the first instance,
the lawyer in England is a busi-
! ness man and is not permitted to
practice before the Bar of Courts
of Record. Only barristers and
counsellorS may do SO, and they
are not permitted to do any other
character of legal work Further
more, as l understand, there is no
absolute right of admission to the
bar. Before one can be admitted
j to the bar (and lawyer is not
member of the barr he must Join
one Of the Inns of Court, I think
there are four of them AS I un-
derstand, he is not admitted to the
bar until the Benchers or govern
ing body feel he has attained a suf-
/ ficlent proficiency. Admitted to
/ the bar, he cannot, as in this coun-
: try, conduct a trial. but must act
as junior counsel. and the duties
which he performs are limited
/ While he is acting as junior coun-
sci, the senior or leading counsel is
usually a man of experience and
ability, SO that the English barris-
ter in the first years of his practice
Is obtaining practical training I'M
der men of proven ability and in
tegrity, because I believe that few.
II any. men are admitted to the bar
in England whose integrity is not
unqueStioned The barriSter is not
advanced TO the rank Of counsel
unless and until he has proven
himself sufficiently proficient in
the discharge Of his duties in trials
as Junior counsel. The result is
that few, if any, men at the bar in
England are in a position to take
an important part in the trial of
q civil or criminal case until they
have been thoroughly drilled and
schooled in trial work in the man
ner outlined, and as indicated, the
integrity Of the members of the
bar is usually beyond question.
The judges of the English court
are selected from the leaders of the
bar purely for their judicial quail
fications and not with regard to
political strength. No man reaches
the bench in England who has not
become a. leader among expert
trial lawyers, and the men who ap-
pear before him are themselves ex-
perts. The result is that tactics
which are constantly indulged in
here in the trial of civil and GRIM
inal cases before a jury would not
be tolerated for moment in Eng
land.
Contrast the system in vogue in
this country: Here we have a gen.
eral feeling that being a free coun-
try, it is the right of every man to
practise any profession which he
sees fit. Admission to the bar car
ries with it the right Immediately
to appear before any court. of rec
ord. While, theoretically, only
persons of good moral character are
admitted to the bar, there is really
no way, as in England, of judging
the moral character of applicants,
and practically any person who can
pass the examination obtains a Ii
cenSe TO practise. The result is
that the ranks of the profession are
overcroWded. While the majority
of lawyers are able and honest,
there is minority which, during
the last decade has unfortunately
been increasing, of men who are
both unskilled in their profession
and utterly unscrupulous morally
Unfortunately the entire bar bears
the stigma attaching to the con-
duct of the minority. The deleter-
ious effect of an overcrowded legal
profession upon the body polite