[House Bill, No. 44. J HOUSE OF RErRESENTATIVES, May G, 1864— Read first and second times, referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and ordered to be printed. [By Mr. GaUland, from the Committee on Claims, &c.] A. BILL To bo entitled An Act to establish the court for the investigation of claims against the Government of the Confederate States. I Section 1. The Congress of tlie Confederate States of America 2" do enact. That the tribunal for the investigation of claims against 3 the Government of the Confederate States shall 'be called the 4 Court of Claims and shall consist of a chief justice and two 5 associate justices, who shall be appointed by the President, by 6 and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and hold their 7 offices during good behavior, and two of whom shall be a quorum 8 and shall hold annually, at the seat of Government of the Con- 9 federate States, two sessions, the one commencing on the second 10 Monday of May, and the other on the second Monday of Novem- 1 1 bor. When a quorum shall not be present, the said court may, 12 by any one of its justices who may bo present be adjourned from 13 day to day, till a quorum be convened. The associate justices 14 shall have precedence according to tho date of their commissions, 1 J or when the commissions date on the same day according to their 1 6 respective ages. 1 Sec. i. The said court shall have jurisdiction of all claims 2 grounded in law and equity against the Confederate States and 3 shall keep a record of its proceedings. Every claim shall be » 4 presented by petition. The. said courts shall have full power o and authority from time to time to prescribe and regulate and , 6 alter the forms and modes of framing and filing petitions in 7 cases pending therein, the forms and modes of taking and 5 obtaining evidence, and also the forms and mode of preparing 9 and maturing such cases for hearing ; to grant re-hearings under 10 such rules as the said court may prescribe ; and generally to 1 1 regulate the whole practice of the said court ; to impose and 12 administer, or cause to be administerd all necessary oaths or 13 affirmations ; to appoint commissioners to take testimony to be 14 used in the investigation of claims that may come before it; to 15 prescribe the fees the said commissioners shall receive for their 16 services and the compensation of witnesses ; to issue or cause 17 to be issued subpoenas and such other process as may be noces- 18 sary for the exercise of its jurisdiction. « 1 Sec. 3. The said court shall have the same power to issue 2 attachments aad inflict summary punishments for contempts of 3 court as the other judicial courts of the Confederate States. 1 Sec. I. When testimony is taken for the claimant the fees of 3. _ -^ I T' ^y-X 2 the commissioner before whom it is taken, the costs of notice, p ■#■/<: 3 the compensation of witnesses, and necessary postage shall be 4 paid by the claimant ; and when taken at the instance of the 5 Government, such fees, compensation of witnesses, and costs, 6 together with all postage incurred by the solicitor, in relation 7 thereto, or otherwise in his official capacity shall be paid out of 8 the contingent fund provided fqr said court. In all cases, when 9 it can be conveniently done, the testimony shall be taken in the 10 county where the deponent resides ; and the commissioner taking 1 1 the same is hereby authorized and required to administer an oath 12 or affirmation to the witnesses brought before him for exami 13 nation. 1 Sec. 5. The chief justice of the said courl. ami each of the 2 associate justices shall receive a salary of five thousand dollars 3 per annum, payable quarterly in advance, fromi the treasury of 4 the Confederate States, and each of the said justices shall be 5 sworn or affirmed to administer justice without respect to per- 6 sons, and faithfully and impartially to execute all the duties 7 incumbent upon him, according to the best of. his abilities and 8 understanding agreeably to the constitution and laws of the 9 Confederate States. U Sec. 6. The f*aid court shall appoint a clerk, an assistant 2 clerk, a marshal and a master. The said clerk, assistant clerk, 3 and marshal shall perform such duties as the said court shall 4 4 direct, and the said master shall, under the rules of the said 5 court, execute any order or orders which may be made by the C said court for the stating of accounts, or for the ascertainment 7 and stating of facts, and shall perform such other duties as may 8 be directed by said court. The said clerk shall receive a salary 9 of twenty-five hundred dollars per annum, the said assistant 1 clerk a salary of two thousand dollars per annum, and the said 1 1 marshal a salary of twelve hundred dollars per annum, and the 12 said master a salary of twenty-five hundred dollars per annum, 13 payable monthly, from the treasury of the Confederate States, 1 4 and each of them shall be sworn or affirmed faithfully to execute 15 the duties of his office and to support the Constitution of the 16 Confederate States, and may be removed from office by the said 17 court when his services are unnecessary, or for dishonesty, 18 incapacity, in^ciency, misconduct, or' neglect of duty. And the 19 said court shall have power, in any case, whenever, in its opinion, 20 the master should not act, to appoint a special master to act in 21 the place of the master in such case ; and shall allow the special 22 master for his services reasonable compensation to be paid from .23 the treasury of the Confederate States. 1 Sec. 7. The clerk of the said court shall, under its direction, 2 disburse the contingent fund, which may, from time to time, be. 3 appropriated for its use, but he shall first give bond in such form 4 and with such security aa shall be approved by the Secretary of 5 the Treasury. His accounts shall be settled by the accounting 6 oflBcers of the Treasury. 1 Sec. 8. A solicitor and junior solicitor, to represent the Con- 2 federate States before the said court shall be appointed by the 3 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. It . 4 shall be the duty of said solicitor and junior solicitor to prepare 5 the defence on the part of the Confederate States in all cases 6 before the said court ; to cause all necessary testimony to be 7 taken for the Confederate States ; to file interrogatories and 8 superintend the taking of testimony in the manner that may be 9 prescribed by the rules of the said court ; and to perform such 10 other appropriate duties as may be required of them by the said 1 1 court ; and the said solicitor and junior solicitor shall each be 12 sworn or affirmed faithfully to execute the duties of his'office, and 13 to support the Constitution of the Confederate States. The said 14 solicitor shall receive a siliry of four thousand dollars ■ per 15 annum, and the said junior solicitor a salary of three thousand 16 dollars per annum, payable monthly, from the Treasury of the 17 Confederate States. • 1 Sec 9. In the said court; claimants may plead and manage 2 their own cases personally, or by the assistance of such counsel 3 or attorneys at law as by the rules of the said court may be 4 permitted to manage or conduct cases therein, and the said 5 court may, for any malpractice 'herein by any such counsel or ■6 G attorney at law, suspend his privilep;e to manage causes ami 7 conduct therein. 1 Sec. 1 0. The said court shall have power to call upon any of the 2 departmonts nf tho Government for nnv infonnntion or papers it 3 may deem necessary, and shall have tne use of all recorded or ' 4 printed reports made by the committees of either house of Con- 5 gress, when deemed necessary in the prosecution of its duties, fi but the head of any department may decline to answer any call 7 for information or papers, if, in his opinion, the publication 8 ' thereof would be injurious to the public interests. 1 Sec. 11 . In any case where the matter in dispute exceeds the 2 sum of five thousand dollars, an appeal may be taken from the • .3 final judgment of said court, either by the Confederate States 4 or by any claimant in the said case to -the n^xt terra of the Su- • 5 preme Court of the Confederate States : Provided, That applica- 6 tion for such appeal be made and entered in the Court of Claims 7 within sixty days after the said judgment, shall have been ren- 8 dered. But if the judgment bo rendered within the last twenty 9 days of the term, the application may bo made within the first 1(1 twenty days of the next term. When a judgment of the Court 1 1 of Claims shall be reversed in the Supreme Court, that court 12 shall proceed to render such juc^gment as the Court of Claims 13 should have rendered, "and in every case, whether the judgment 14 of the Court of Claims be reversed - •" •^flfirmed by the Supreme 15 Court, the clerk of the Supremo Court shall certify and transmit 16 its judgment to the clerk of the Court of Claims, and the Court 17 of Claims shall enter the judgment of the Supreme Court as its IS own judgment, 1 Sec. 12. Every case taken to the Supreme Court by appeal 2 from the Court of Claims shall be heard on, a transcript of the 3 record of so much of said case as will enable the Supreme Court 4 properly to decide the questions th^t may arise beforft it ; but 5 so much of the record shall be copied as any party may dosiro 6 except that, unless the Court of Claims or the Supreme Court 7 otherwise direct, there shall not be copied any orders made be- S fore the final hearing of the case, except such as are necessary 9 to show that the case was regularly matured for hearing ; nor of 10 the commissions and notices to take depositions, captions to such 11 depositions, and certificates of their having been been sworn to, 12 any more than is necessary to the reading of depositions; but 13 the name of each witness, and the the day of taking his deposi- 14 tion, shall be stated at the head thereof. If more than one copy ' 15 of the same paper be filed in each case, only one. copy of it shall 16 be, inserted. There shall not be copied an account reported by 17 the master, to which there is no exception, nor any printed doc- 18 ument of which either party will furnish to the clerk of the Court 19 of Claims a copy, but such duplicate shall be attached to what 20 is copied; and when a case has been before in the Supremp il Court there shall only be copied the proceedings subsequent, to 22 the former appeal. 1 Sec. 13. The Supreme Court may, when a case has before 2 been in that court, inspect the record upon the former appeal. 3 And the supreme Court may, in any case, award a writ of cer- 4 tiorari to thg clerk cf the Court of Claims, and have brought 5 before it, when a part of the record is omitted, the whole or any 6 part of such record. But the Supreme Court shall, in no case, 7 hear oral testimony, or cause depositions to be taken. 1 Sec. 1 4. Said Court of Claims shall report to Congress, at 2 each session, a catalogue of all cases finally decided in favor of 3 the claimant, together' with the judgment and opinion of the 4 court in each case decided during the preceding recess, or which 5 may be decided during the continuance of said session, and all 6 appropriations, if any, made for payment of the said judgment, 7 shall specify the exact amount approp^'iated in each case. 1 * Sec. 15. That all claims against the Confederate States orig- 2 inating during the present war shall be barred, unless suit for 3 the same be instituted in the Court of Claims, within two years 4 after the date of the ratification of a treaty of peace between the 5 Confederate States and the Government of the United States, and 6 other claims shall be barred, unless suit for the same- be instituted ^r 7 in the Court of Claims within four years after the establishment "> (>f ilu' ?-;iid court, or within four vears after the same shall have !) OtiH;ifi;lTC(l. I Sir. jO No SenJitor or Keproseutntive in Congress ^ha 11 In- J. :\]\f\M-i\ !') I rricficc iri mi it! court ;i^; hti attoJi'iev or agent. i iSi.( ''7 And iiiii#i :i j>i;icc for 'Aw Ik Itlinfr of rheCointof .' (.'Iiiiih> ,-i!i;ill It },i«>\ iilcif I._v ].\\\ , tiio couit shall have power }(» .! pn (.•!!!•'. :it tlif' scar (•! < Ion cuiiii'.-tit of tlit' Confeiifrv. us inav h«- I'.coc^s'arv for .") ^t}>( c.aiN ( iiirJit ti : i,.-iMti' II (fit.- !.^l^ilu•^s. vliicli si .-Ul 1h juntl for I'- I'lit i;l I! Ci iit:in:i;(.. 1,^, 'i-'iic I >( t ;n ;ii,ci ► <«f Jjistico -liiill |'rovi