CHAPTER IV.

THE JUDICIAL BRANCH.

THE STATE JUDICIARY.

The Courts. The judicial power of the State is exercised by the following courts: 1. The Court of Impeachment. 2. The Court of Appeals. 3. The Supreme Court. 4. County Courts. 5. Surrogates' Courts. 6. Justices' Courts and Inferior Local Courts. 7. Coroners' Courts; and 8. The Court of Claims.* In all these Courts except the Court of Claims and some minor city courts the judicial officers are elected by the people. In this respect the judiciary of the State differs from that of the United States, for the latter are all appointed. Another difference is that the state judges hold office for a fixed number of years, while the federal judges' terms are "during good behavior" (i.e., for life). The principle of making the judiciary independent of political influence is, however, recognized by granting them terms of office much longer than other state officials.

General Provisions.-In order to preserve the efficiency of the courts the Constitution provides:

COMPENSATION: LIMIT OF SERVICE.-The Judges and Justices herein before mentioned shall receive for their services a compensation established by law, which shall not be increased or diminished during their official terms, No person shall hold

the office of Judge or Justice of any court longer than until and

*The Court of Appeals, Supreme Court, County Courts and Surrogates' Courts are termed "Courts of Record"; Justices' Courts and other minor Courts are "Courts not of Record."

including the last day of December next after he shall be seventy years of age. (Art. VI., Sec. 12.)

QUALIFICATIONS. FEES. LIMITATIONS.-No judicial officer, except Justices of the Peace, shall receive to his own use any fees or perquisites of office; nor shall any Judge of the Court of Appeals, or Justice of the Supreme Court, or any County Judge or Surrogate hereafter elected in a county having a population exceeding one hundred and twenty thousand, practice as an attorney or counselor in any court of record in this State, No one shall be eligible to the office of Judge of the Court of Appeals, Justice of the Supreme Court, or, except in the County of Hamilton, to the office of County Judge or Surrogate, who is not an attorney and counselor of this State. (Art. IV., Sec. 20.) JUDGES NOT TO HOLD OTHER OFFICE.-The Judges of the Court of Appeals and the Justices of the Supreme Court shall not hold any other office or public trust. All votes for any of them, for any other than a judicial office, given by the Legislature or the people, shall be void. (Art. IV., Sec. 10.)

WHEN JUDGES NOT TO SIT.-No Judge or Justice shall sit in the Appellate Division or in the Court of Appeals in review of a decision made by him or by any court of which he was at the time a sitting member. (Art. IV., Sec. 3.)

REMOVAL OF JUDGES.-Judges of the Court of Appeals and Justices of the Supreme Court may be removed by concurrent resolution of both houses of the Legislature, if two-thirds of all the members elected to each house concur therein. All other judicial officers, except Justices of the Peace and judges or justices of inferior courts not of record, may be removed by the Senate, on the recommendation of the Governor, if two-thirds of all the members elected to the Senate concur therein. But no officer shall be removed by virtue of this section except for cause, which shall be entered on the journals, nor unless he shall have been served with a statement of the cause alleged, and shall have an opportunity to be heard. On the question of removal, the yeas and nays shall be entered on the journal. (Art. VI., Sec. 11.)

1. THE COURT OF IMPEACHMENT.

Impeachment. The impeachment of public officers is provided for by the Constitution as follows:

The Asssembly shall have the power of impeachment, by a vote of a majority of all the members elected. The Court for the Trial of Impeachments shall be composed of the President of the Senate, the Senators or the major part of them, and the Judges of the Court of Appeals, or the major part of them. On the trial of an impeachment against the Governor or LieutenantGovernor, the Lieutenant-Governor shall not act as a member of the court. Before the trial of an impeachment the members of the court shall take an oath or affirmation truly and impartially to try the impeachment according to the evidence, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of twothirds of the members present. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, or removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under this State; but the party impeached shall be liable to indictment and punishment according to law. (Art. VI., Sec. 13.)

The method of procedure and the trial are similar to that pursued in the Federal Government (see Book I., page 156); but the State Constitution does not state, as does the Federal Constitution, the officers who may be impeached, nor does it limit the grounds for impeachment.

2. THE COURT OF APPEALS.

Organization. This court is the highest court in the State for the decision of legal questions, or as it is called, "the court of last resort," because its decisions are final, except where the Federal Constitution, laws or treaties are involved.

It shall consist of the Chief Judge and the Associate Judges

now in office,

and their successors, who shall be chosen by the electors of the State. The official terms of the Chief Judge and Associate Judges shall be fourteen years from and including the first day of January next after their election. Five members of the court shall form a quorum, and the concurrence of four shall be necessary to a decision. The court shall have power to appoint and to remove its reporter, clerk and attendants. Whenever and as often as a majority of the Judges of the Court of Appeals shall certify to the Governor that said court is unable, by reason of the accumulation of causes pending therein, to hear and dispose of the same with reasonable speed, the Governor shall designate not more than four Justices of the Supreme Court to serve as Associate Judges of Court of Appeals. The Justices so designated shall be relieved from their duties as Justices of the Supreme Court and shall serve as Associate Judges of the Court of Appeals until the causes undisposed of in said court are reduced to two hundred, when they shall return to the Supreme Court. No more than seven Judges shall sit in any case.

(Art. VI., Sec. 7.)

The Chief Judge and the six Associate Judges are elected by the voters of the entire State, and hold office for fourteen years. The Chief Judge receives an annual salary of $10,500, and each Associate Judge $10,000, together with $2,000 for expenses.

FILLING VACANCY IN COURT OF APPEALS.-When a vacancy shall occur otherwise than by expiration of term, in the office of Chief or Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals, the same shall be filled, for a full term, at the next general election happening not less than three months after such vacancy occurs; and until the vacancy shall be filled, the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, if the Senate shall be in session, or if not in session the Governor may fill such vacancy by appointment. . . . All appointments under this section shall continue until and including the last day of December next after the election at which the vacancy shall be filled. (Art. VI., Sec. 8.)

3. THE SUPREME COURT.

Name and Importance.-The Supreme Court * is retained from the judicial systems established by former Constitutions (see pages 11, 13, 15), and is the most important institution in New York for the administration of justice, because it holds sessions throughout the State, and because of its extensive jurisdiction, which will be considered later.

Judicial Departments and Districts.-The Constitution provides for purposes of justice that:

The Legislature shall divide the State into four judicial departments. The first department shall consist of the county of New York; the others shall be bounded by county lines, and be compact and equal in population as nearly as may be. Once every ten years the Legislature may alter the judicial departments, but without increasing the number thereof. (Art. VI., Sec. 2, Par. 1.)

These departments are divided into eight Judicial Districts, comprising several counties, to which seventy-six Supreme Court Justices are allotted, as follows:

* The term "Supreme Court " is a survival of the name of the highest law court of the province of New York. However, in state practice it is a misnomer, as most of its decisions of law are not final, but are subject to review by the Court of Appeals, which, though now a distinct judicial tribunal, is, in fact, a development of the function of the legislative branch to pass upon decisions of the judiciary. In colonial times this function was exercised by the governor and his council, and under the first constitution, by the chancellor and senate, in the same way that it is exercised to-day by the English House of Lords. But in federal practice the Supreme Court is considered the highest court of the State, since its judgments are the ones reviewed upon appeals to the Supreme Court of the United States.