Walters v. Jackson and Newton Co.
| Decision Date | 31 October 1918 |
| Citation | 231 Mass. 247 |
| Parties | FRANK H. WALTERS v. JACKSON AND NEWTON COMPANY. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Supreme Court |
October 29, 1918.
Present: RUGG, C J., BRALEY, DE COURCY, CROSBY, & PIERCE, JJ.
Practice, Civil Report.
By R.L.c. 173 Section 108, St. 1912, c. 317, the power of a judge of the Superior Court, after the death of another judge of that court who had presided at a trial, to report the case thus tried for determination by this court, is confined expressly to cases where the trial judge had reserved the case for report and failed by reason of his death to make such report; and, in a case where there was no request to the trial judge to report the case and no decision by him to make a report, another judge has no power to report the case after his death.
TORT. Writ dated June 5, 1916. The case was tried before Hardy, J., on December 15, 1916. At the close of the plaintiff's evidence the judge ordered a verdict for the defendant, and the plaintiff filed a bill of exceptions, but there never was a hearing upon it. The time for the allowance of the exceptions was extended from time to time by agreement and the last extension expired on December 3, 1917, which was after the death of Hardy, J., "and through inadvertence of counsel the time was not extended before said expiration."
On December 18, 1917, the plaintiff filed in the Superior Court a motion that the case might be assigned to a judge of that court to be reported by him on an agreed statement of facts for determination by this court.
The motion was heard by J. F. Brown, J., who "ruled that under the law a justice of the Superior Court had no authority to allow such a motion." The judge denied the motion; and the plaintiff alleged exceptions.
The case was submitted on briefs. E. C. Stone, for the plaintiff.
H. R. Bygrave, for the defendant.
Exceptions were duly saved at the trial of this case. The time for the allowance of exceptions as extended expired on December 3, 1917. The judge before whom the case was tried had then deceased. Through inadvertence of counsel no request was made seasonably for further extension of the time for allowing exceptions. There had been no request to the trial judge to report the case to this court and no determination by him to make a report.
Under these circumstances there is no jurisdiction in another judge to make a report even if such course seems wise. The power of a judge of the Superior Court to report questions of law for the determination of this court is wholly the creature of statute. Riverbank Improvement Co. v. Chapman, 224 Mass. 424 , 425, and cases there...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Pierce, Case of
...a part of a suit which he has 'heard for final determination.' Taft v. Stoddard, 141 Mass. 150, 6 N.E. 836; Walters v. Jackson & Newton Co., 231 Mass. 247, 248, 120 N.E. 688; Orth v. Paramount Pictures, Inc., 311 Mass. 580, 581-582, 42 N.E.2d 524; Dunlop v. Claussen, 313 Mass. 715, 48 N.E.2......
-
Pierce, Case of
... ... Taft v. Stoddard, 141 Mass. 150, 6 N.E. 836; ... Walters v. Jackson & Newton Co., 231 Mass. 247, 248, ... 120 N.E. 688; Orth v. Paramount Pictures, Inc., ... ...
-
Commonwealth v. Cronin
...v. Chapman, 224 Mass. 424, 425, 113 N. E. 215;Atlantic Maritime Co. v. Gloucester, 228 Mass. 519, 117 N. E. 924;Walters v. Jackson & Newton Co., 231 Mass. 247, 120 N. E. 688;Porter v. Boston Storage Warehouse Co., 238 Mass. 298, 130 N. E. 502. ‘The trend of all our decisions has been to con......
-
Nartowicz' Case
...who did not decide or report it. See Newburyport Institution for Savings v. Coffin, 189 Mass. 74, 75 N.E. 81; Walters v. Jackson & Newton, Co., 231 Mass. 247, 120 N.E. 688. Even in such a situation there would be nothing to prevent the parties from assenting, as they could be found to have ......