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THE ALBANY LAW JOURNAL:

A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE LAW AND THE LAWYERS.

The Albany Law Journal.

ALBANY, JULY 3, 1886.

CURRENT TOPICS.

UDGE SEYMOUR D. THOMPSON, of St. Louis,

Association, has addressed a circular to the members, asking their opinion on the following subjects: Codification; trial by jury; relief of appellate courts; delays and uncertainties in administration of criminal law; legal education; the selection of judges; champertous engagements by attorneys. Many specific questions are asked under each head. Among the most interesting is the question whether the State ought not to have the right to put the prisoner on the witness stand and interrogate him, but without the power of compelling answers; whether the prosecuting attorney ought not to be allowed to comment on the prisoner's failure to testify where he has the right; whether judges should be elected or appointed; for what term; and whether they should be re-eligible; whether the "contingent fee business" is injurious to justice, and whether the defendant should be allowed to show such an agreement if it exists. This circular is anticipatory of a report to the association at the next meeting.

The London Law Times takes notice of the report of the eighth annual meeting of the American Bar Association; after stating that one of the professed objects of the association is to " encourage cordial intercourse among the members of the American Bar," it observes: "It is with the latter, among other objects, we presume, that a 'collation,' figures in the programme of the meeting." It commends the style of the discussions, and particularly of Mr. Biddle's paper on the Proper mode of Trial. It also observes: "Facile princeps, however, is the report of the special committee upon the delay of judicial administration, bearing the honored names of David Dudley Field and John F. Dillon. It is in every way excellent, but space forbids any copious exVOL. 34-No. 1.

tracts from it. They sum up the chief causes in the following words: Complex procedure, inadequate judiciary, procrastination, retrial, unreasonable appeals, uncertain law. The latter they propose to remedy by codification, which, curiously enough, met with strenuous opposition among the members of the association, so much so that its discussion was postponed to the present year." We fear that the Times people are to be ranked among the "code fellows." The New York City Bar Association ought to appoint and send a committee over to correct them.

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In an article of the last number of the American Law Review entitled "Hints about Trials," Judge Brown of Detroit laments the prolixity of jury trials in this country and contrasts it with the rapidity of them in England. He says very truly that “a case that ought to be finished in a day or two is dragged on for a week." Hours are wasted in taking testimony upon immaterial points, or in the unnecessary multiplication of witnesses to the same fact. Days are consumed in examining plaintiff's witnesses only to find that he has made no case a fact which ought to have been discovered when he made his opening to the jury. And finally, if the trial be closely contested, the chances are that the jury will disagree, or the verdict be set aside because an inadvertent question was asked, or a word was misspelled in the indictment. The consequence of all this is that the judicial force of the country is out of all proportion to the amount of work done, and the cost to the public for jury fees and other court expenses is something enormous." He admits that the English celerity is somewhat offset by the difficulty of getting a case at issue there. He makes several suggestions for improvement. First, that after the plaintiff has opened, the defendant should be required to state his case, so as to see if the cause cannot be disposed of as a question of law. Second, that cumulative testimony should be excluded. Third, that counsel should be required to stand in examining witnesses. Fourth, that questions of admission of testimony should not be discussed much. Fifth, that counsel should be limited in time for argument. Eighth, that personalties should be prohibited. Ninth, that requests to charge

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