CHAPTER VIII

SPECIAL COURTS AND QUASI COURTS

$75. The Court of Claims.

§ 76. The Court of Customs Appeals.

§ 77. The Commerce Court (now abolished).

78. Courts of the District of Columbia.

$79. Territorial and insular courts.

$80. The court of private land claims.

§ 81. Consular courts-United States court for China.

§ 82. The department of justice.

83. The general land office.

§ 84. The Interstate Commerce Commission.

§ 85. Military courts.

§ 75. The Court of Claims. Formerly any person having a claim against the United States had no remedy but to petition Congress for relief. Such claims are now prosecuted in the Court of Claims, a special court established in 1855 to take jurisdiction of claims against the government. The court consists of a chief justice and four judges, who are appointed by the president, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and hold office during good behavior. The court sits at Washington.

The claims enforceable in this court are designated by statute, and, to the extent prescribed, the United States. has consented to be sued in this court. The procedure also is prescribed by statute. Appeals lie to the Supreme Court.

The provisions relating to the Court of Claims constitute Chapter VII of the Judicial Code.1

1-Judicial Code, §§ 136-187; 2

Fed. St. Ann. 53-101.

§ 76. The Court of Customs Appeals. The United States Court of Customs Appeals was created by Section 29 of the Tariff Act of August 5, 1909, re-enacted with slight changes as Chapter VIII of the Judicial Code.2 The court consists of a presiding judge and four associate judges appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, each of whom receives a salary of $7,000 per annum. Any three members constitute a quorum, and the concurrence of three members is necessary to any decision. The court sits at Washington, and is required to be always open for the transaction of business, "and sessions thereof may, in the discretion of the court, be held in the several judicial circuits, and at such places as said court may from time to time designate."

The statute (Section 195) provides that "The Court of Customs Appeals established by this chapter shall exercise exclusive appellate jurisdiction to review by appeal, as herein provided, final decisions by a board of general appraisers in all cases as to the construction of the law and the facts respecting the classification of merchandise and the rate of duty imposed thereon under such classification, and the fees and charges connected therewith, and all appealable questions as to the jurisdiction of said board, and all appealable questions as to the laws and regulations governing the collection of customs revenues; and the judgments and decree of said court of customs appeals shall be final in all such cases.”

By an amendment by act of August 22, 1914, a power of review by the Supreme Court was granted in certain cases.3

§ 77. The Commerce Court [now abolished]. The Commerce Court was created by an act of June 18, 1910. The

2-Judicial Code, §§ 188-199; Supp. (1909) Fed. St. Ann. 821-824.

3-38 Stat. L. 703 Supp. (1916) Fed. St. Ann. 132.

provisions relating to this court constituted Chapter IX of the Judicial Code.

The court was composed of five judges to be from time to time designated and assigned thereto by the chief justice of the United States from among the circuit judges of the United States, for the period of five years; except that in the first instance the court was to consist of five additional circuit judges to be appointed under authority of the act creating the commerce court.

The court was required to be always open for the transaction of business, and its regular sessions were held in Washington, but the court was authorized to hold sessions in different parts of the United States as might be found desirable.

The jurisdiction of the court extended to matters of interstate commerce and was defined by the statute, which also prescribed the practice and procedure of the court. Final judgments or decrees of the commerce court were subject to review by the Supreme Court.

This court rendered a few decisions but was abolished by act of October 22, 1913, and causes pending in the commerce court were transferred to the district court.*

§ 78. Courts of the District of Columbia. The courts of the District of Columbia are established by Congress under its power to exercise exclusive legislation over the district. They are courts of the United States though it would seem that they do not belong to the federal judicial system, being established by Congress under its

4-38 Stat. L. 219, Supp. (1914) Fed. St. Ann. 230.

The first case to come before the Commerce Court was Proctor & Gamble Co. v. United States, 188 Fed. 221. The decision in this case was reversed in 225 U. S. 282, with direc tions to dismiss the cause for want of jurisdiction. The opinion of the

5

Commerce Court in this case was rendered by Judge Robert W. Archbald. The decisions of the Commerce Court, though occasionally affirmed by the Supreme Court, were frequently reversed. A number of instances will be found in Vol. 234 U. S. Reports.

5-Embry v. Palmer, 107 U. S. 3.

power to legislate for the district rather than under its power "to constitute tribunals inferior to the supreme court." There seems to be no more reason, however, to regard them as courts of the United States than so to consider the territorial courts established by Congress under its power to legislate for the territories, except that the Constitution expressly provides for the district, while the territories were probably not contemplated at the time the Constitution was adopted, and the territorial form of government is temporary while that of the District of Columbia is permanent. In regard to the jurisdiction that may be conferred by Congress upon them, there seems to be no distinction between the territorial courts and those of the district. In neither case need it be confined to the federal judicial power as defined by the Constitution.

Under the new code of 1901 the judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court of the United States, the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia, the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, and the inferior courts, namely the justice courts and police courts. The supreme court of the district (which was established in 1893) possesses the same powers and exercises the same jurisdiction as the circuit and district courts of the United States, besides the jurisdiction exercised by the supreme court at the date of the passage of the code of 1901. The court of appeals of the district has appellate jurisdiction over the decisions of the supreme court and inferior tribunals. The Supreme Court of the United States has appellate jurisdiction, in certain cases, to review the decisions of the court of appeals.

§ 79. Territorial and insular courts. The provisions of the Constitution relating to the judicial power do not

6-See Code of District of Columbia; also 12 Cyc. of L. & P. 961

apply to the territories, but Congress under its general power to legislate for the territories has established courts in each of the territories, which are not courts of the United States under the Constitution, but "congressional courts."7 The judges are appointed by the president and hold office for limited terms. For judicial purposes, the territories are attached to adjacent circuits, and appeals may be taken from the territorial supreme courts to the circuit court of appeals and the supreme court. Of course, territorial courts cease to exist as such upon the admission of the territory as a state,3 as has now taken place as to all the original territories.

District courts with the jurisdiction of the circuit and district courts of the United States have been established for Alaska, the Territory of Hawaii,10 and Porto Rico.11

Philippine Islands. The courts of the Philippine Islands consist of the supreme court and the "courts of first instance." The chief justice and associate justices of the supreme court are appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The judges of the courts of first instance are appointed by the civil governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Philippine commission. The Supreme Court of the United States has power to review the judgments and decrees of the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands in all cases "in which the Constitution or any statute, treaty, title, right or privilege of the United States is involved, or in causes in which the value in controversy exceeds twenty-five thousand dollars, or in which the title or possession of real estate exceeding in value the

7-American Ins. Co. v. Canter, 1 Pet. 511; McAllister V. United States, 141 U. S. 170.

8-See 7 Fed. St. Ann. 222-224. 9-1 Fed. St. Ann. 23; Supp. (1909) Fed. St. Ann. 36.

The district court of Alaska is

not a court of the United States. McAllister v. United States, 141 U. S. 170.

10-3 Fed. St. Ann. 206; Supp. (1909) Fed. St. Ann. 152.

11-5 Fed. St. Ann. 773.