Evening star., 1937-02-05
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tSOI1tlkluGu FTUlll IllSJ IdkS.D
Federal courts have been altered in
one way or another. The Supreme
Court was established with six
members of 1888; it was reduced to
five in 1901; it was increased to
seven in 1907: 1t was increased to
nine in 1897; it was increased to
ten in 1868; 1t was reduced to seven
in 1866; it was increased to nine
in 1869.
Complaint Increasing
Of insufficient judiciary.
The simple fact is that today
new need for legislative action
arises because the personnel of the
Federal judiciary Is insufficient to
meet the business before them. A
growing body of our citizens COM
plain of the complexities, the de-
lays and the expense Of litigation
in United States courts.
A letter from the Attorney Gen.
eral, which I submit herewith.
justifies by reasoning and statis-
tics the common impression created
by our overcrowded Federal dockets
and it proves the need for addi.
tional judges.
Delay in any court results in in
justice.
1t makes lawsuits a luxury avail
able only to the few who can af-
ford them or who have property
interests to protect which are
sufficiently large to repay the cost.
Poor litigants are compelled to
abandon valuable rights or to &C.
cept inadequate or unjust settle
ments because of sheer inability to
finance or to await the end Of q
long litigation. Only by speeding
UP the processes OF the law and
thereby reducing their cost can
We eradicate the growing impress
sion that the courts are chiefly .
haven for the well-to-do.
Delays in the determination of
appeals have the same effect.
Moreover, if trials Of original ac-
tions are expedited and existing
accumulations of cases are re-
duced. the volume of work imposed
on the circuit courts of appeals
will further increase.
The attainment Of speedier jus
tice in the courts below will en-
large the task of the Supreme
Court itself. And still more work
would be added by the recommen-
dation which I make later in this
message for the quicker determi-
nation of constitutional questions
by the highest court.
Even at the present time the
Supreme Court is laboring under a
heavy burden. Its difficulties in
this respect we're superflcially
lightened some years ago by au-
thorizing the court, in its discre-
ton, to refuse to hear appeals in
many classes of cases. This dis
cretion was so freely exercised that
in the last fiscal year, although
867 petitions for review were pre-
sented to the Supreme Court, 1t
declined to hear TIT cases. II Pc
titions In behalf of the Govern
ment are excluded, it appears that
the court permitted private liti-
gants to prosecute appeals in only
l08 cases out of S03 applications.
Many Of the refusals were doubt
less warranted. But can it be said
that full justice is achieved when
a court is forced by the sheer ne
cessity Of keeping up with its busi-
ness to decline, without even an
explanation, to hear 81 per cent
Of the cases presented to it by
private litigants?
It seems clear, therefore. that
the necessity of relieving present
congestion extends to the enlarge
ment of the capacity Of all the
Federal courts.
A part of the problem Of obtain
ing sufficient number of judges
to dispose Of cases is the capacity
of the judges themselves. This
brings forward the question of aged
or infirm judges subject Of
delicacy and yet one which re-
quires frank discussion.
237 Life Tenure a
Federal Judgeships.
In the Federal courts there are
in all 237 life tenure permanent
judgeships. Twenty-Five Of them
are now held by judges over 70
years Of age and eligible to leave
the bench on full pay. Originally
no pension or retirement allowance