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Judicial Code of 1911
The Judicial Code of 1911 was the most expansive act concerning the judiciary ever passed by Congress. It finally abolished all the circuit courts, transferring all their jurisdiction to the district courts, thereby making them the first level of the federal judiciary in every case. The provision for this only occupies a very small portion of text at the end of the code, but it is by far the most important and influential provision contained therein.[1][2]
History
Twenty years prior to the passage of the Judicial Code of 1911, the Evarts Act of 1891 had, among other things, repealed the appellate jurisdiction of the circuit courts. This left America with four different sorts of federal courts, two of which had no appellate jurisdiction, and could therefore just as well be combined into one united system of trial courts. The Judicial Code of 1911 sought to remedy that.[2]
Provisions of the Act
The fourteen chapters of the Judicial Code of 1911 are:
- CHAPTER ONE. District Courts - Organization
- CHAPTER TWO. District Courts - Jurisdiction
- CHAPTER THREE. District Courts - Removal of Causes
- CHAPTER FOUR. District Courts - Miscellaneous Provisions
- CHAPTER FIVE. District Courts - Districts, and Provisions Applicable to Particular States
- CHAPTER SIX. Circuit Court of Appeals
- CHAPTER SEVEN. The Court of Claims
- CHAPTER EIGHT. The Court of Customs Appeals
- CHAPTER NINE. The Commerce Court
- CHAPTER TEN. The Supreme Court
- CHAPTER ELEVEN. Provisions Common to More Than One Court
- CHAPTER TWELVE. Juries
- CHAPTER THIRTEEN. General Provisions
- CHAPTER FOURTEEN. Repealing Provisions[1]
Chapters 1-12
The most important and lasting provision of this act was the abolition of the circuit court system. Many minor items filled in the rest of this long act; different districts had developed legal practices which were ingrained by tradition, and different courts often were actually governed by contradictory federal laws. Most of this code was devoted to rectifying these disparities by a general re-writing of many preceding judicial laws. The Federal Judicial Center has this to say about Chapters 1-12:
| “ | The remainder of the Judicial Code of 1911 was not so much a reorganization of the structure or procedures of the federal courts as it was a standardization of law governing the judiciary. Over more than 120 years, many contradictory statutes had accumulated through legislation approved for the purpose of organizing individual courts.[2] [3] | ” |
Chapter 13
Chapter 13, entitled General Provisions, consists of Sections 289-296. Section 289 abolishes the circuit courts; 290 states that all business and records of the circuit courts are to be transferred to their respective district courts. 291-296 refer to how the Judicial Code itself is to be understood, interpreted, etc. 294 states that whenever any provision made in the Code is substantially the same as a provision in a former law, the new one should not be construed as a repeal or emendation to the original, but merely as an organized re-statement of the original law, retaining its original intent.[4]
Chapter 14
Chapter 14, entitled Repealing Provisions, lists the laws and statutes repealed by this new code.[5]
See also
External links
- JSTOR.org, The Judicial Code of March 3, 1911
- Federal Judicial Center, Landmark Judicial Legislation: The Judicial Code of 1911
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 JSTOR.org, The Judicial Code of March 3, 1911
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Landmark Judicial Legislation: The Judicial Code of 1911 from the Federal Judicial Center
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Google, Full text of the Judicial Code of 1911 See pages 145 & 146
- ↑ Google, Full text of the Judicial Code of 1911 See pages 147-149
