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The Green Bag
practise law before another justice of the peace in the city, town or county in which he resides, or to have a partner engaged in the practice of law in any
justices’ court in such city, town or county.
Every city justice of the peace
in any city or town of the fourth class shall receive a salary of fifteen hundred dollars per annum, and every city justice of the peace in any city or town of the third class shall receive a salary of two thousand dollars per annum, and every
city justice of the peace in any city or town of the first and one-half class shall receive a salary of three thousand dollars
per annum, and every city justice of the peace in any city or town of the second
class shall receive a salary of thirty-six hundred dollars per annum; and each justice of the peace shall be provided by the city or town authorities with a suitable office in which to hold his court. "Where the compensation of the justice of the peace of any city or town is by salary, it shall be paid by warrants drawn each month upon the salary fund,
or if there be no salary fund, then upon the general fund, of such city or town;
such warrants to be audited and paid as salaries of other city ofi‘icials.
All
fees which are chargeable by law for services rendered by such city justice of the peace in cities or towns afore said shall be by them, respectively, col lected, and on the first Monday of each month, every such city or town justice of the peace shall make a report, under oath, to the city or town treasurer, of the amount of fees so by him collected,
and pay the amount so collected into the city or town treasury, to the credit of the general fund thereof. Said salaries shall be the sole compensation of said
city justices." Section 86, California Code of Civil
Procedure, provides: —
The supervisors of every city and county having more than one hundred thousand popu lation, shall appoint a justices‘ clerk on the written nomination and recommendation of said justices, or a majority of them, who shall hold oflice for two years, and until his successor is in like manner appointed and qualified. Said jus tices' clerk shall take the constitutional oath of office, and give bond in the sum of ten thousand dollars for the faithful discharge of the duties of his ofiice, and in the same manner as is or may be required of other officers of such city and county. A new or additional bond may be required by the supervisors of such city and county, and in such amount as may be fixed by said super visors, whenever they may deem it necessary. The justices’ clerk shall have authority to ap point two deputy clerks, for whose acts he shall be responsible on his oflicial bond, the said deputy clerks to hold oflice during the pleasure of said clerk. Said justices‘ clerk and deputy shall have authority to administer oaths, and take and certify affidavits in any action, suit, or proceed ing in said justices‘ court.
The citizenship of America is begin ning to wake up to the value of trained ofiicials.
l
It can be judicially seen by the
legal profession that great injustice is done to many of the inhabitants of our states as a necessary result, if we con tinue to have a justice court system
without lawyers to serve in the courts as justices. There has been a gradual extension of civil and criminal jurisdiction in America. The tendency of
modern legislation is further to enlarge the above mentioned jurisdictions so as to include prosecution for crimes not amounting to felonies. Under the earli
est statutes relating to justices of the peace, the number in each county was
increased from two or three to three or four and subsequently the number was
increased to six or eight.
The number
is now regulated by statute, the com mon number being two for each town ship or district and a larger number in cities and towns. It is better practice to have uniform jurisdiction and in
Georgia and Nebraska uniformity of
i
.
