Evening star., 1949-12-25
District Court
ToMake Shifts
In |n0fficeSpace
; Appeals Judges
Will Get Chambers
5 Blocks Away

III tIlt Slldpe Ol JuQlCldTy
Square"
The Square" highly amorphou,
Of late, will undergo still another
transition soon after the first oI
the year.
Not only will certain parts O,
District Court be moved from
temporary quarters in the Unitec
States Tax Court, the Justice De.
partment building and both the
civil and criminal division build.
tngs of Municipal Court, but
chambers are to be provided fivt
blocks afield for three judges ot
the United States Court of Ap.
peals.
The new adjunct of District
Court is being set up on the tor
floor of the Standard Oil Build
ing at Third street and Constitu-
ton avenue NV. The Court o1
Appeals is taking over a small
part of the Home Owners Loar
Corp. building at First street anc
Indiana avenue NV.
Second Recent Relocation.
This involves trek from the
central location of both courts
at Fifth and E streets NV.
Providing for a total of nine
additional judges for three of the
city's courts necessitated the hous-
ing relocation. second in recent
months. Space to accommodate
the new jurists, all but three of
whom already have. been ap-
pointed, had to be found or judges
might have gone idle.
To Chief Judge Bolitha J. Laws,
time was the essence. Had the
new housing plan not been
adopted, his court would have had
to go on a two-shift basis. Judge
Laws has always opposed this
idea.
Chief Judge Harold M. Ste
phens of the appeals court had
to find chambers for his three
new judges or struggle along with
one judge using a conference
room and two others doubling
up" on chambers already in use
In the Court of Appeals building.
The nine judges need only one
courtroom. already provided.
Judge Matthews "Evicted."
Until the Standard Oil build
ing room was provided, Judge
Laws was faced by repetition of
such developments:
Judge Burnita S. Matthews,
settled down for a while In the
Tax Court building. found her
self evicted recently. The Tax
Court judges regretfully gave no.
tice they needed her temporary
court for their own purposes.
Shortly afterward, Judge Laws,
who had been using a conference
room at the Justice Department,
likewise had to vacate because
Justice needed the room again.
The evicted Judge had to move
back to his own chambers, where
he held his court. And even his
chambers were on a temporary
basis, being in the criminal divi-
sion building Of Municipal Court.
And during hearings, Judge
Charles Mclaughlin had to pass
through these chambers to an
ante-room in order to don and dof
his robes of Office.
This hardly lent to the dignity
Of my court" according to Judge
Laws.
Apparently Settled.
Under the new plan, which
should remain fixed until the big
new courthouse is completed at
John Marshall place and Penn
sylvania avenue NV, two years
hence, litigants. lawyers and
judges should be reasonably con-
tent.
The court reshuffle goes like
this:
From quarters in the Municipal
Court civil and criminal division
buildings to the ESQ Building go
the District Court Committee on
Admissions and Grievances, the
Jury Commission and the Domes-
tic Relations Commission, and the
courtrooms of Judges James Kirk
land and Burnita Matthews.
In addition to the high-ceil-
tnged, fluorescent lighted court
rooms two judges will have Their
own chambers, and there will be 8
witness assembly room and two
jury celebrating rooms. Judge
Matthews will retain her main
chambers in the District Court
building, as well.
$35,000 for Relocation.
According to Public Building
Administration officials. who are
using a $35, 900 Congressional ap-
preparation for the relocation pro-
gram, the new courtrooms will
bear the closest resemblance te
the real thing as possible. The
judges benches will be elevated
the jury boxes enclosed and there
will be room for at least Is specta-
tors in each court. While the lum-
ber will be walnut-stained ply
wood. instead of the genuine arti-
Gle, the effect should be as pleas
ant, a PBA spokesman said.
In the District Court building
meanwhile, Judge Mclaughlin has
been given his own courtroom anc
chambers carved out of what once
was jury assembly room. It hap.
pens that four years ago, the court
auditors Office had to vacate thai
space for quarters in the Century
Building, across the way in the 40t
block of Fifth street NV.
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