Evening star., 1955-05-18
Senators 0kay
Court Shift Of
Family Cases
U. S. Bench to Turn
Heavy Load Over to
Municipal Judges
BY DON s. WARREN

The Judiciary subcommittee
Of the Senate District Commit
tee today approved the proposed
transfer of domestic relations
cases from the U. S. District
Court for the District Of Colum-
bla to the Municipal Court.
At the same time, members
OF the subcommittee agreed that
extra judges to be named to the
Municipal Court should not be
constituted as a distinct branch
of the court. but rather that do
mestic relations cases should be
assigned to members of the
bench under a system of rota-
ton. A.
A brand new bill will be
drafted to carry out these and
other tentative conclusions
adopted today. it was announced
by Senator Morse, Democrat, of
Oregon, chairman of the sub
committee.
Drafting New Bill
He and the other two men,
bers, Senator Bible. Democrat.
Of Nevada, and Senator Hruska,
Republican, of Nebraska. were
in full agreement on the prin-
ciples that were involved. They
delayed final action, however,
because of the necessity of
drafting a new bill and they
wanted to make sure it could be
so worded as to carry out the
principles without running into
legal difficulties.
A study also will be made Of
the questions of cost and the
number of extra judges needed.
The subcommittee had decided
the Municipal Court should be
given the number of extra
judges necessary but noted that
the court is about current with
its work.
The group agreed with Fed
eral Chief Judge Bolitha Laws
that that court should be re-
lieved of domestic relations
cases.
The subcommittee, however.
decided that advocates of the
creation of a separate family
court had not made out a con-
vincing case. The District might
find itself saddled with someone
temperamentally unsuited for
the job, it was pointed out.
Wide Discretion
This is one of the reasons why
the group decided to transfer
the jurisdiction to the Municipal
Court as whole, under a plan
to give the Chief Judge of the
Municipal Court considerable
discretion over the assignment of
members of that bench to handle
domestic relations cases.
Senator Morse said the sub
committee agreed that members
assigned to such work should be
given longer periods than the
present three-month rotation
system in the Federal court. But
the idea was that the assign
ments of individual judges to do
nestle relations should not be so
long as to amount to a division
of the court or so long that the
Judge might become "case-hard-
ened" from handling so many
cases of the same type.
The Morse subcommittee also
concluded that once a domestic
relations case was filed, once it
reached the court stage" it
should be handled as an "adver-
sary proceeding" Under this, as
now, lawyers for opposing par
ties would have the right to
cross-examine.
Senator Morse said this did not
rule out the use of domestic re-
lations commissioners or the So
called reconciliation agents. but
he stressed that full control of
any case would remain with the
judge who would not be able to
delegate any matters of decision
to any agent of the court.
Members of the Municipal
Court now are paid $4,000 year
with $500 more for the chief
judge. Under pending legisla-
tion before the Senate District
Committee they would be given
a pay raise of $500.