Minnesota & Ontario Paper Co. v. Molyneaux

70 F.2d 545, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 4221
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
DecidedMarch 17, 1934
Docket381
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 70 F.2d 545 (Minnesota & Ontario Paper Co. v. Molyneaux) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Minnesota & Ontario Paper Co. v. Molyneaux, 70 F.2d 545, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 4221 (8th Cir. 1934).

Opinion

STONE, Circuit Judge.

This is an application for a writ of mandamus or (alternatively) of prohibition against Judge Molyneaux, of the District of Minnesota. The basis of the application is that a disqualifying affidavit was filed by petitioners against the Judge in Wirt Wilson & Company v. Minnesota and Ontario Paper Company, pending before him, and that the judge erroneously held such insufficient and is proceeding to exercise jurisdiction therein.

In limine, we are met by a challenge from respondent of the jurisdiction of this court to entertain the application. The jurisdiction of federal courts as to such writs is statutory, Henderson Tire & Rubber Co. v. Reeves, Judge, 14 F.(2d) 993, this court, certiorari denied 273 U. S. 744, 47 S. Ct. 336, 71 L. Ed. 879; Muir v. Chatfield, 255 F. 24 (C. C. A. 2) and as to Courts of Appeals, Whitney v. Dick, 202 U. S. 132, 135, 136, 26 S. Ct. 584, 59 L. Ed. 963, is contained in section 377 USCA title 28, the pertinent part of which is as follows: “The Supreme Court, the circuit courts of appeals, and the district courts shall have power to issue all writs not specifically provided for by statute, which may be necessary for the exercise of their respective jurisdictions, and agreeable to the usages and principles of law.” This statute seems to be a legislative declaration of the judicially declared rule that the use of original writs might be included in appellate jurisdiction. Marbury v. Madison, 1 Cranch, 137, 175, 2 L. Ed. 60; Ex parte Yerger, 8 Wall. 85, 98, 19 L. Ed. 332, and many other cases, and see Ex parte United States, 287 U. S. 241, 245, 53 S. Ct. 129, 77 L. Ed. 283.

One of the limitations of this section is to such writs of this character as “may be necessary for the exercise of their respective jurisdictions.” The jurisdiction of the Court of Appeals is purely appellate. USCA title 28, § 225; U. S. v. Mayer, 235 U. S. 55, 65, 35 S. Ct. 16, 59 L. Ed. 129; Whitney v. Dick, 202 U. S. 132, 137, 138, 26 S. Ct. 584, 59 L. Ed. 963. Therefore Courts of Appeals can entertain such writs only where they are “necessary for the exercise of” appellate jurisdiction. Whether such appellate jurisdiction exists is determined, not alone by the pendency of an appeal, but by whether the proceeding in the lower court to be affected by the writ is “within the appellate jurisdiction of the higher court.” Ex parte United States, 287 U. S. 241, 246, 53 S. Ct. 129, 130, 77 L. Ed. 283; McClellan v. Carland, 217 U. S. 268, 280, 30 S. Ct. 501, 54 L. Ed. 762. Obviously, the proceeding here in the lower court is within the appellate jurisdiction of this court because it is an ordinary receivership action. Where such appellate jurisdiction exists, the necessary original writs may be entertained for any purpose necessary to protect the full exercise of that jurisdiction. One situation classed within such protection of appellate jurisdiction is where the right of appeal exists but because of the presence of “ ‘circumstances imperatively demanding’ a departure from the ordinary remedy by * * * appeal” (Whitney v. Dick, 202 U. S. 132, 140, 26 S. Ct. 584, 588, 59 L. Ed. 963) is necessary. In such situation, the .writs may be employed “as an auxiliary process, and * * * as a means of correcting excesses of jurisdiction, of giving full force and effect to existing appellate authority, and of furthering justice in other kindred ways.” United States v. Beatty, 232 U. S. 463, 467, 34 S. Ct. 392, 394, 58 L. Ed. 686. This rule has been recognized in this; Greyerbiehl v. Hughes Elec. Co. (C. C. A.) 294 F. 802, 805, and Turner v. United States (C. C. A.) 14 F.(2d) 360, 361, and other courts, Pickwick-Greyhound Lines v. Shattuck, 61 F.(2d) 485, 487 (C. C. A. 10); Blake v. District Court, 59 F.(2d) 78, 79 (C. C. A. 9).

It has been repeatedly declared by the Supreme Court that various original writs “cannot” be used as a substitute for appeal or writ of error. While this language (“cannot”) was suited to the cases wherein used, it is evidently too broad for universal application because other decisions expressly recognize that there are situations where the appropriate writ may be employed even though the remedy of writ of error or appeal exists. Ex parte United States, 287 U. S. 241, 248, 53 S. Ct. 129, 77 L. Ed. 283; In re Lincoln, 202 U. S. 178, 182, 183, 26 S. Ct. 602, 50 L. Ed. 984; Riggins v. United States, 199 U. S. 547, 548, 551, 26 S. Ct. 147, 50 L. Ed. 303. In Riggins v. United States, supra, page 548 of 199 U. S., 26 S. Ct. 147, 148, the court said: “It is settled that the writ of habeas corpus will not issue unless the court under whose warrant petitioner is held is without jurisdiction, and that it cannot be used merely to correct errors. Ordinarily the writ will not be granted when *547 there is a remedy by writ of error or appeal, yet, in rare and exceptional cases, it may be issued, although such remedy exists.” From this situation it is clear that the appellate court has jurisdiction in every application for a writ — even where there is a remedy by writ of error or appeal — to determine whether the ease is “rare and exceptional” or (as said in the same ease, page 551 of 199 U. S., 26 S. Ct. 147, 149) the record discloses “any special circumstances” which justify “a departure from the regular course of judicial procedure.” If such “special circumstances” are found to exist, the court may issue the writ. If such are found not to exist, the court will refuse the writ for that reason. We construe this condition of the law as follows: The jurisdiction exists, but the granting of the writ is within the discretion of the court (Ex parte United States, 287 U. S. 241, 248, 53 S. Ct. 129, 77 L. Ed. 283), and an established rule of law limiting the exercise of that discretion is that the writ will not issue where the remedy of appeal exists (or existed), unless the record discloses such “special circumstances” as to make it a “rare and exceptional” ease. If this statement is accurate, we have the jurisdiction, but must determine whether the remedy of appeal exists, and, if it does, whether this is such a rare and exceptional case.

The remedy of appeal undoubtedly exists from an order denying sufficiency of a disqualifying affidavit — which is the situation here. Ex parte American Steel Barrel Co., 230 U. S. 35, 45, 33 S. Ct. 1007, 57 L. Ed. 1379; Glasgow v. Moyer, 225 U. S. 420, 32 S. Ct. 753, 56 L. Ed. 1147.

Whether this is a rare and exceptional ease is, we think, ruled by Ex parte American Steel Barrel Co., supra.

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Bluebook (online)
70 F.2d 545, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 4221, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/minnesota-ontario-paper-co-v-molyneaux-ca8-1934.