THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. MONDAY, JUNE 30, 1879.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVI, Issue 5497, 30 June 1879, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. MONDAY, JUNE 30, 1879.

Ix dealing with the question of reforming our minor judicial system, we have hitherto spoken, only of the increased efficiency of the system. We have urged that there is no longer, if there ever existed, any valid reason why unskilled, and therefore necessarily more or less incompetent, persons should be made judges of interosts of large importance to suitors in our courts. We have pointed out that, in the mother country the contrary practice prevails to such an extent that even cases as small as the smallest of those ordinarily brought before our Resident Magistrates are there dealt with, by judges choson from amongst the ablest barristeis of the second rank in the profession. We have suggested a direction in which reforms might proceed which would get rid of the anomalies which exist, by extending the sphere of the duties of our District Judges, and practically doing away with our Resident Magistrate's Courts altogether. We maintain that there is always an argument against multiplying departments of any sort wholly apart from the question of expense, and this applies as much, if not more, to courts of justice as to any other department of Government. If for no other reason, such multiplying iw ohjectionable where the number of qualified persons is necessarily small. In this colony many judges must mean bad judges, because there aro not a large number of suitable men for the office. But, in spite of this, the question of cost is one which must be considered. The colony is not in a position to disregard expense, even for so good a purpose as the improvement of our courts of justice. It remains for us, therefore, to say something upon the cost of our system as now constituted, aud as it would be if reformed in the direction in which we have urged that reform should take place. The expense of maintaining our District Courts now amount to nearly £7,000 a-year, while that of the Resident Magistrates' and Wardens' Courts amounts to fully £41,000 a-year. As a general rule, the staff, that is to say the clerks, of District Courts act also as clerks to the other courts, so that there is not at present a double expense in this respect. The main consideration, therefore, amounts to this : What is the cost of judges in these two courts, and how could they be amalgamated ? There are at, present nine District Court Judges in the colony, whose salaries amount to £4,600. Four of these, however, are also Resident Magistrates, and part of their salaries are paid them in that capacity, while one is Native Lands Court Judge, and receires nearly 31l his salary from that source. In reality, those nine District Court Judges receive £6,600 a-year as salary for the work they do in a judicical capacity. There are also forty-one Resident Magistrates, whose salarios come to rather more than £16,500 a year ; or, deducting what goes to tho four District Judges, who are also Resident Magistrates, to £15,300 a-year. The total salaries paid to judges of our minor courts is, therfore, close upon £22,900 a-year. This sum would, we feel confident, be sufficient, if judiciously applied, to provide judges of the standing of our best District Court Judges, to do the whole judicial work now done by our minor courts. In carrying such a reform into effect two things must be borne in mind : one is, that the success of any euch system must largely depend upon the selection of proper men for the work; and the other, that the location of these men mustbe wisely made with a view to the circumstances of the country. To obtain the services of proper men we believe it will be necessary to pay higher salaries than have hitherto been paid to any of our District Judges. It is a notorious fact that no lawyer, in even respectable practice, would accept ii District Judgeship in New Zealand, unless he were disabled either by,feeble health or old age from the vigorous practices of his profession. In England each of the court judges is paid a,uniform : Bftlaxy.,ef £1^5.00/a yoai :t with a large pension" upon retirement after so

many years'services. In the neighbouring colonies, the District Judges are never paid less than £1,000 a year, and travelling expenses, and this salary does not in all cases ensure good men accepting the office. What is wanted in a District Court Judge, under a system, such as we venture to advocate, is sound legal knowledge, a naturally calm and judicial turn of mind, combined with experience and good standing in his profession, and to these qualifications must be added comparative youth and vigour, if he is to do the work which will be demanded of him. Now it is clear that some inducements beyond a bare living must be offered to men at all answering this description, before they will give up their business, and accept a judgeship which, if it has some dignity to recommend it, has also many drawbacks compared with the freedom which an ordinary lawyer possesses. We assume, therefore, that judges of such a District Court as we have spoken I of must be paid salaries of at least £1,000 a-year each. The sum now expended would pay twenty-two such judges for the colony. Taking the case of our own Provincial District, with which we are naturally best acquainted, it would enable five such District Court Judges to be employed. The work to be done by these five judges would extend from the North Cape to Poverty Bay, a district probably more scattered than any other in the colony. Yet wc feel confident the work could be really well done by five men fitted for the task, as we have already pointed out that tbey should be. One such judge could undertake the districts north of the County of Waitemata, and could bring law and justice more within the roach of the settlers in those districts than they have ever hitherto been brought. A second could provide for the Counties of Waitemata and Eden without difficulty, i and might hold courts at Onehunga or Otahuhu, and at Helensville, an well as in Auckland. A third could undertake the County of Manukau and the Waikato County; while between the other two, could easily be divided the valley of the Thames and the East Coast settlements. In some such way as this, we believe, active men suited for the work could bring the advantages of our Districts Court home to the settlers in nearly every part of the country. It is true that whatever advantage may attach to the residence of a judge in each neighbourhood would be sacrificed, but, for our own part, we are doubtful of the benefit of such residence. As a rule, we believe, justice would be less suspected were the judges itinerant than it is when they are fixed to one locality, and form the natural ties of neighbourhood and friendship. Nor can we concede that it is good in districts where natives abound, to have a magistrate settled, who is also, as many are, an agent of the Native Department. If such agents are required, let them, indeed, be appointed ; but, on all accounts, they are better not to be the authorised representatives of law and justice. In short, our desire is to see the character of our minor courts raised above its present level, and their advantages given to all parts of our settled districts. The course we have ventured to suggest would, we believe, have this effect more, at all events, than any other ; and we trust that, in any reform which is proposed, a change in the direction we have suggested may at least be considered, even if, for any reason, it is not entirely adopted.