Evening star., 1937-02-27

nop being ,paged In Washington as
a result OF President Roosepelfs
proornm for court reorgdnizdttors.
BY WILLIAM C. McCLOY.
Except for the splendid structure,
with its completely modern furnishings
and equipment, there Is little to dis
tinguish the Supreme Court in its
new home. The procedure OF its
operations is the same. Only upon
very special occasions Is the court
room crowded. Dignity and decorum
have always marked its sessions, and
they are still strictly maintained.
on the days when decisions are
handed down. promptly at the ap-
pointed hour the court crier an
nounces the entrance Of the justices.
AS in all other properly conducted
courts, the audience rises and re-
mains. standing until the justices are
seated The opening Of the session
Is, simple, direct, dignified.
After a few moments silence, the
chief justice mods to one of the other
Justices, who proceeds to read an
opinion, quietly.
It Is difficult to conceive OF any
thing less sensational than the hand
ing down Of the general run Of the
opinions of the justices, Affirmative
or dissenting. There is no show OF
feeling, no attempt to please or dis
please anybody, and the language is
50 legalistic that. for the visiting lay
man, 1t might Just as well be in an
other tongue.
Business Expedited.
Under the judiciary act Of 1925 the
extension of the system of selective
or discretionary jurisdiction first
adopted in 1891, just as the court
passed its centenary, the court has
greatly expedited its business in the
last dozen years. Formerly. the court
allowed the lawyers appearing before
1t much greater latitude in present.
ing their cases. The result was an
abundance Of oratory for rich clients
and little law for the justices.
The new procedure has changed all
that. Frequently. nowadays. the court
stops arguments when 1t decides 1t has
enough information for decision.
Furthermore, only certain classes OF
cases can come before the court as a
matter of right. Attorneys must now
present good and sufficient reasons
before obtaining combinations or re-
hearing Frivolous appeals are dealt
with sharply. Taken altogether,
these changes have greatly si-lplif1ed
and speeded up the business of the
court during the last decade.
When the attorneys for both sides
Of an important case have finished
their arguments and handed in their
briefs, the justices discuss the case
privately. The real labor of their
office is in writing their opinions The
astonishing thing to visiting laymen
is the simplicity of the court and its
proceedings,
Most Gases Arise on Appeal.
A great majority of the cases COM
ing before the Supreme Court reach
there on appeal either from lower
Federal court or the highest court Of
q State when some Federal question
Is involved.
The few cases begun in the Supreme
Court itself are designated as orig
inal Jurisdiction" The Constitution
specifies that the Supreme Court shall
have original jurisdiction (not neces-
sarily exclusive) in cases affecting
Ambassadors, other public ministers
and consuls and in those cases in
which State shall be a party.
It should be said here that even
Congress has no power to enlarge this
original jurisdiction Of the court, for
that would be construed as amending
the Constitution in an unlawful way
The most important and distinctive
function Of the court, therefore, Is to
decide appeals from the highest State
courts and to settle Federal questions
coming from the lower Federal courts.
This makes the Supreme Court the
defender OF the rights reserved to the
States, the interpreter Of the national
laws and, above and beyond all else,
the guardian Of the Constitution.
Cases involving the constitutionality
Of State legislation are by far the most
mills roaring at full blast for half
the year. and with thousands Of law
yers seeking higher Offices as friends
Of the people, the amount OF new
legislation is prodigious-the more i'm
portant Of which must reach the Su-
pren1e Court in some form. In these
reforming days, legislators everywhere
are inclined to pass anything and let
the higher courts assume the onus
Of declaring 1t unconstitutional. pass
ing the buck" Is the favorite pastime
Of many who live by politics.
Origin of State Law Gases.
Generally speaking, most cases in
volvine the constitutionality Of State
laws result: % From alleged in
fringement Of the right of Congress
to regulate interstate commerce; ca
from impairing the obligation Of con-
tracts; 90 from conflicts over clauses
Of the fourteenth amendment, which
prohibits the States from depriving
any person Of "life, liberty or property"
without "due process of law" and "po-
bee power" cases.
Another class Of cases commanding
considerable attention of the Supreme
Court consists of actions in which
one party asserts and the other denies
tome right or immunity derived di-
Hectly under the Constitution, statutes
Or treaties. Here, the court acts as
the guardian Of the reserved rights
Of the States and as the medium
through which the executive legisla-
tive branches Of the Government are
restrained from overstepping the lines
marked out for them In the funda-
mental law.
Such cases are largely disputes over
the boundaries Of national and State
authorities. The court starts with the
premise that the National Government
Is government of limited powers,
enumerated in the Constitution and