Fuller v. United States

58 F. 329, 1893 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Georgia
DecidedOctober 17, 1893
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 58 F. 329 (Fuller v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fuller v. United States, 58 F. 329, 1893 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133 (N.D. Ga. 1893).

Opinion

NEWMAN, District Judge.

Olin 0. Fuller, clerk of the circuit court; for the northern district of Georgia, brings this suit against the government for certain disallowances made by the treasury department in his accounts as clerk. After plaintiff has dismissed certain parts of the bill of particulars set out in his original suit, the case now proceeds on the following items:

Item 1. (As amended.) Fees in connection with orders, etc., for the payment of witnesses.

Treasury Statement No. 124,850.$60.45

Item 2. Fees for recording in complete final record of criminal cases orders otherwise recorded on the minutes of the court.

Treasury Statement No. 122,895.$13.65

Item. 3. Fees for drawing list of 700 names of jurors, with post-office addresses, in revising jury box.

Treasury Statement No. 124,850. $4.80

[330]*330Item 4 Fees for entering 700 names of jurors, with, post-office addresses, in jury box.

Treasury Department Statement No. 124,850.$480

Item 5. For administering oaths to answers of defendants in scire facias, cases.

Treasury Statement No. 124,850.$ .30

Item 6. For issuing, and entering return and filing commitments.

Treasury Statement No. 126,161.$3.75

The plea filed by the United States attorney for the government is: First, a general denial; second, the plea of payments; third, “that the defendant is not and cannot be held liable for the payment of said accounts, and the several items thereof, pending-questions of law involved before the supreme court of the United States, and which questions of law have not yet been determined.”

The stipulation as to the facts agreed upon between the United States attorney and the claimant is as follows:

“(1) It is agreed that the orders for payment of witnesses, for which claim for payment is made, were drawn, entered upon the minutes of the court, filed, and one copy of each order certified to the marshal; also that e£ich witness was sworn as to the mileage and per diem. It is agreed that the above services were performed in obedience to an order of the court passed May 27th, 1890, and section 855, Rev. St.
“(2) It is agreed that final records were written in all criminal cases, for which claim for payment is made, as directed in the order of court directing the recording of criminal cases, and prescribing what papers and pleadings shall be recorded, passed by the court on March 19th, 1888.
“(3) It is agreed that the claimant drew lists of the names of 700 persons, with their post-office addresses, for jurors, and the same were deposited in the jury box, as prescribed by section 800, par. O, and that said names were also entered upon jury booh by claimant, as required by rule No. 50 of this court.
“(4) It is agreed that claimant administered the oaths to the 3 answers of defendants in scire facias proceedings, for which claim is made.
“(5) It is agreed that the claimant issued the 3 writs of commitment in the case of the United States vs. Geo. Sanges et al., on Dec. 19th, 1890.
“S. A. Darnell, U. S. Atty.
“O. O. Fuller, in propria persona.
“In regard to the 5th stipulation referred to above it is further agreed by the district attorney, upon an examination of the papers, that there were four separate bench warrants issued for the four defendants, and each defendant was committed to jail by different deputy marshals, on the same day.
“Oct. 13th, 1893. . Geo. L. Bell, Asst. Dist. Atty.”

It will be seen that the stipulation concedes that the service was rendered by the clerk, so that, the facts being conceded, the only question is as to the legal liability of the government to its officers for the service performed.

Item 1. This item is for fees claimed to have been earned by the clerk in drawing and entering upon the minutes of the court certain orders in reference to the payment of witnesses, and the filing and certifying the same to the marshal. It will be seen that the district attorney concedes that this serviée was rendered in pursuance of an order in reference thereto, passed by the circuit judge on May 27, 1890, as follows:

[331]*331“The clerk and tlie marshal of this court desiring a. rule as to orders for the payment of witnesses, and it appearing to the court that the practice of this court of many years standing of requiring the clerk to make a report to the court in each case of the amount due the witnesses, each hy name, for travel and attendance, which, after being approved and signed by the court, is entered on the minutes of the court, and a copy of each order certified to the marshal, enabling him to pay at once, is a better and more ap-propriaie practice than to permit the certificate on which the marshal is to make payment to be withheld to the end of the term, and .then made, including all cases, it is ordered that said practice, heretofore prevailing, be pursued until further order of the court.
“In open court, this 27th day of May, 1890.
“Don A. Pardee, Circuit Judge.”

1’rior to the passage of this order there was no rule on the subject, but the practice bad been as indicated in the order. It is clear that it is the duty of the cleric to comply with this order passed bv the circuit judge. In tlie case of U. S. v. Van Duzee, 140 U. S. 173, 11 Sup. Ct. Rep. 758, the court says:

“When the clerk perforins a service in obedience to an order of the court he is as much entitled to compensation as if he were able to put his finger upon a particular clause of a statute authorizing compensation for such •services.”

In the case of U. S. v. King, 147 U. S. 676, 13 Sup. Ct. Rep. 439, the supreme court condemned the practice such as that for which this claim is made, but in that case it appeared simply to have been the practice of the court, and there was no order of the court, so far as,the report of the case shows, especially directing the method in which the accounts of witnesses and jurors should be prepared and certified. In viewr of the decision in the Van Duzee Case, supra, it is not believed that the supreme court would have disallowed the items alluded to in the King Case, even if they had condemned the practice as improper. If the circuit judge had, by an order, directed the clerk to do the work in this particular manner, I do not see how the clerk could, under the circumstances, disregard the order. Immediately after the publication of the King Case, supra, this court, by an order, discontinued the old practice, and adopted a practice in harmony with that decision. I am of the opinion that tlie cleric is entitled to recover tills item of $60.45.

Item 2. This charge of $18.65 is for recording in complete final record in criminal cases orders otherwise recorded on the minutes of the court. The following order as to what papers, pleadings, entries, etc., shall be included in the complete final record of criminal cases was passed by the court on March 21, 3887, and concurred in by the circuit court judge on March 19, 3888, and is now in force:

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Bluebook (online)
58 F. 329, 1893 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fuller-v-united-states-gand-1893.