Evening star., 1939-02-04
Law Sessions
ToHear Lands
Address Today
Aitchison of !. C..
Warns Against
Reform Hondicops

James M. Lands, formerly chair
man of the Securities and Exchange
Commission and now dean Of the
Harvard Law School, heads group
of speakers who will wind up the
administrative law conference to-
day and tonight at the Chamber
of Commerce.
Dean Lands will speak at 3 pm.
today along with Kenneth Sears
of the University of Chicago Law
School. Tonight's session at 8
o'clock will hear Louis G. Caldwell,
a member of the District bar, and
William j. Dempsey, general coun-
sci of the Federal Communications
Commission.
The conference opened last night
before more than $500 practicing
lawyers and members of govern
mental legal stats. 1t is spon-
sored by the George washington
University Law School.
Interstate Commerce Commission
er Clyde B. Aitchison at the session
last night issued sharp warning
against hampering the efficiency of
administrative agencies through re-
form efforts.
Frowns on Uniform Plan.
He insisted one uniform plan for
all agencies cannot be made and
protested against proposals calcu-
lated to give wholesale treatment
to things Importantly unlike in
some ways"
Reforming administrative proc
ess," he says, ''has become popu-
lar American indoor sport"
Commissioner Aitchison insisted
1T is no light matter" to interfere
with the operation of the adminis-
trative agencies, especially in its
internal functions.
"An important administrative
agency" he suggested sarcastically
should be able to fix the lunch
hour of its employees without hav-
ing to hold hearing and to revise
it without a presidential declaration
of emergency"
Col. o. r. Mcguire, general
counsel of the General Accounting
Off1ce and chairman of the Ameri-
can Bar Associations special Com
mittee on Administrative Law, took
exception to the remark of mem
ber of the panel. Col. MCGUIRE
outlined a bill proposing certain ad-
ministrative reforms which the Bar
Association committee has drawn
up over a period of six or seven
years. He denied any such pro-
posal to interfere with lunch hour
regulation and said he was sure the
remark was intended to be face
tious. The bill called for imple-
menting personnel statutes, he said.
Believes in Uniform Procedure.
Col. MCGUIRE said he was con-
cerned with procedure before the
agencies and believed this could be
uniform.
Commissioner Aitchison said less
than l per cent resisted the de-
terminations of commissions. He
warned against letting bill for
reform became a bill Ito enlarge
the opportunity of stubborn, ag-
grieved people with the financial
ability to go into court"
He urged emphasis on the es-
sentials Of justice rather than on
the mechanics of procedure.
The opening address was deliv-
cred by E. Blythe Stason of the
University of Michigan Law School.
Mr.. Stason urged study in the field
of administrative law, especially
around the inquisitorial powers Of
administrative agencies and the
problem of too close relationship
between prosecution and decision by
the agencies.
Newell Ellison, president of the
George Washington Law Associa-
ton. suggested an independent legal
staff to prosecute the cases. Robert
Maurer of Georgetown University
warned against isolationist tenden-
cies of individual agencies. He
thought there was much they could
learn from each other.