Civil Government of Virginia Part 8

23. What other offices does the register of the land office hold?

24. Mention some of the duties of the register of the land office.

25. What is the business of the land office?

26. What are the duties of the superintendent of weights and measures?

27. What is a patent?

28. What are the duties of the superintendent of the penitentiary?

29. What is the penitentiary?

30. What are the duties of the superintendent of public printing?

31. How is the commissioner of agriculture and immigration chosen and for how long?

32. What salary does he receive?

33. What is the business of the department of agriculture and immigration?

34. Define STATISTICS.

35. What do the mining and manufacturing statistics tell?

36. How many members const.i.tute the State Corporation Commission?

37. How are they chosen?

88. What are their qualifications?

39. What are their duties?

40. What are internal improvements?

41. What are State depositaries?

42. What are the duties of State directors and proxies?

43. What are domestic corporations? 44. Define foreign corporations.

45. Who are the commissioners of the sinking fund?

46. What are the duties of the commissioners of the sinking fund.

47. What officers compose the Board of State Canva.s.sers?

48. What are the duties of the Board of State Canva.s.sers?

V.

JUDICIARY DEPARTMENT.

Supreme Court of Appeals.

Composed of five judges chosen by joint vote of the two houses of the General a.s.sembly. Term, twelve years. Salary: President, $4,200; other judges, each $4,000. The judges shall not hold any other office or public trust; shall not practice law.

Qualifications of Judges. Must have held a judicial station in the United States, or have practiced law for five years.

Sessions. Shall hold a session annually at Richmond. Wytheville, and Staunton.

The Judiciary Department is that part of government which is administered by JUDGES. All the courts of law in the State in which judges sit and hear and decide cases, or all the judges of the State regarded as one body, may be called the JUDICIARY.

The highest court in the State is the Supreme Court of Appeals. It has five judges, who are elected by the General a.s.sembly and hold office for twelve years. The five judges appoint one of their number to be PRESIDENT of the court, and they appoint or select another who must reside at the seat of government. While they hold office as judges of the Court of Appeals they are not allowed to PRACTICE LAW--that is, to act as attorney or counsel (see under Attorney-General, page 29).

JUDICIAL STATION is the station or rank or office of a judge. A person cannot be elected judge of the Supreme Court of Appeals unless he has previously been a judge in the United States, or has practiced law for five years.

The SESSION of the court is the number of days it sits for business at any one place and time.

Jurisdiction. Shall have original jurisdiction in cases of habeas corpus, mandamus, and prohibition; shall have appellate jurisdiction in all cases involving the const.i.tutionality of a law with reference to the Const.i.tution of the State or the United States, or involving the life or liberty of a person, and in other cases prescribed by law. Shall not have jurisdiction in civil cases where the amount in controversy, exclusive of costs, is less than $300, unless such controversy relates to the t.i.tle or boundary of land; or the probate of a will; or the appointment or qualification of a personal representative, guardian, committee, or curator; or a mill, roadway, ferry, or landing; or the right of the state, county or munic.i.p.al corporation to levy tolls or taxes; or involves the construction of a law, ordinance, or proceeding imposing taxes; and, except in cases of habeas corpus, mandamus, or prohibition, the const.i.tutionality of a law, or some other matter not merely pecuniary.

JURISDICTION means the power of a judge or of a court of law.

APPELLATE jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear and decide cases of APPEAL against the decisions of lower courts.

This is the princ.i.p.al business of the Supreme Court of Appeals. In trials in the lower courts it frequently happens that the judge gives a decision which some lawyer acting in the case may think is not in accordance with law, or is not fair to his client. Whenever this happens, the lawyer may take the case to the Supreme Court of Appeals and ask the judges there to set aside the decision of the judge in the lower court. In cases of appeal, the court in which the decision appealed against has been given is called the LOWER COURT, A person who employs a lawyer to act for him in any law business is called a CLIENT.

The Supreme Court, after hearing the complaint or appeal against the decision of the lower court, considers the case and gives judgment on the question. This judgment is final--that is, it ends the case--unless there is some point in the question which has to do with the Const.i.tution of the United States.

A writ is a paper issued by a judge, or court, commanding some person or persons to do something, or to abstain from doing something. Habeas corpus is a Latin phrase meaning you may have the body. A writ of habeas corpus is an order from a court directed usually to a warden or keeper of a prison, and commanding him to bring some particular prisoner before the court so that it may be decided whether there is just cause for his detention.

A mandamus is an order from a superior court to any person, corporation, or inferior--that is, lower--court requiring them to do something which it is part of their duty to do. A writ of prohibition is an order from a superior court prohibiting an inferior court from hearing or deciding a case, on the ground that it (the inferior court) has no jurisdiction in such case.

When the amount in controversy between two parties is less than $300, exclusive of costs--that is, excluding or not counting costs--the case cannot be appealed to the Supreme Court. In such cases that court has no jurisdiction. The idea of this law is that for sums less than $300 it would be absurd to go to the Supreme Court, as the costs might be greater than the sum in dispute. But if the dispute be about the t.i.tle or boundary of land, or any of the other matters mentioned in the remainder of the sentence, the case may go before the Supreme Court of Appeals, even though the sum mentioned in the case be less than $300.

The t.i.tle of land is the right of ownership, and a paper certifying that a person is the owner of certain land is a t.i.tle deed. The probate of a will is the proof or proving of a will. A will is a statement, generally in writing, in which a persons declares his will, or wish, as to how he desires his property to be disposed of after his death. Wills must be probated--that is, proved in the proper court--before they can be legally executed.

A personal representative is one who executes a will (carries out the directions contained in it) or administers the estate or property of a deceased person. A guardian in law is one appointed by a court to take charge of and administer the property of persons who are not of sufficient age or understanding to manage their own affairs. A committee in law is one entrusted with the care of an idiot or a lunatic. Used in this sense, the word is p.r.o.nounced com-mit-tee. A curator is one appointed to act as guardian of the estate of a person not legally competent (qualified) to manage his property, or of the estate of an absentee.

To levy means to raise or collect. Each county in the State has the right to levy tolls and taxes to pay the cost of carrying on its government. The const.i.tutionality of a law is its agreement with the Const.i.tution. The Supreme Court of Appeals has the jurisdiction to decide, when appealed to, whether any law is const.i.tutional or not--that is, whether or not it is allowed by the Const.i.tution of the State of Virginia.

Circuit Courts.

There are twenty-four judicial circuits, with a judge for each circuit. The judge must reside in the circuit for which he is elected; shall not hold any other office or public trust; shall not practice law. Elected by the General a.s.sembly for terms of eight years. Salary, $2,500, except the judge of the circuit which includes the city of Richmond, who receives $3,500. Circuit judges are ent.i.tled to mileage.