Introduction by Governor of Dominion of
Melchizedek Bar Association
melchizedek.com
This is indeed an exciting year, for it represents the official beginnings of our Bar Association. Although I have not met all Members, I welcome each of you with an open heart. You may feel free to call upon my Office at all times for assistance with any questions you may have. If you have not yet become a member of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association and would like to receive an Application, please look at the end of this page and click on where it is highlighted MEMBERSHIP IN THE DOM BAR ASSOCIATION, and return completed application to:
Office of the Governor
Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association
Dominion of Melchizedek Embassy-at-Large,
585 Box Canyon Road, Canoga Park, Ca., 91304
Tel: 1-818-703-5037 Fax: 1-818-887-3217
mailto:richard@caprica.com
We have provided below a copy of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association cards, which are now available to members. If you have not received one, you may wish to up-date and submit your 1998 Application and request the card with your renewal fees. In addition, if you have not received your Certificate of Competence from the dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association please check off the appropriate box on your Application. All Applications are processed within three weeks of receipt.
This is a COPY of the Dominion of Melchizedek
Bar Association Membership Card Now Available
As a matter of continuing professional education, it is strongly suggested that you obtain a copy of and thoroughly familiarize yourself with the contents of:
"Commentaries on the Laws of England" by Sir William Blackstone
Facsimile Edition Vols I-IV, re-published by The University of
Chicago Press (Chicago 1969)
"The Criminal Jurisprudence of the Ancient Hebrews. Compiled
From the Talmud and other Rabbinical Writings, and Compared with
Roman and English Penal Jurisprudence" by S. Mendelsohn (Baltimore: 1891); and
"A Restatement of Rabbinic Civil Law" by Emanuel Quint Vols I-IX,
Published by Jerusalem Institute of Jewish Law Jason Aronson Inc.
(Northvale, New Jersey, 1990)
Much of what is written in the foregoing has immediate relevance to the every day practice of law in the Dominion of Melchizedek. During this next year the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association will begin the publishing of the monthly journal, which will be made available to members by subscription. Look for your subscription materials in the near future.
Peace Be With You Now and Throughout This New Year.
[SEAL]
[L.S.] /s/
Richard James, McDonald, JD
Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association
Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association Act of 1997.
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
Part l -- Licensing Authorities
101. Name.
102. Seal.
103. Principal Office.
104. Service of Process.
105. Purpose.
106. Governor.
107. Other Officers Names.
108.Journal Provided for.
109. Supreme Court to Establish Rules.
110. Examining Board.
111. Compensation and Expenses of Members of the Board.
112. Definitions.
Part 2—Licensing by Certificate of Competence
201. Who considered to be practicing law
202. Who may be admitted as attorney.
203. Qualifications, examination, and admission.204. Application and examination fees.
205. Certificate of admission and license.
206. Asseveration, Not Oath.207. Ad hoc admission of attorneys from other countries. .
208. Roll of attorneys.
209. Penalty for practicing without license.
210. Annual license tax211. Collection of delinquent license tax.
212. Allowance of attorneys' fees to unlicensed people forbidden.
Part 3--Disbarment and Suspension
301. Disbarment.
302. Record of conviction.
303. Proceedings required on receipt of record of conviction.
304. Supreme court to make procedural rules305. Witness fees and expenses.
306. Judgment.
Part 4--Provisions Regulating Practice
401. Authority of attorney.
402. Production of proof of authority to court.
403. Change of attorney404. Notice of change.
405. Death or removal of attorney.406. Penalty for deceit.
407. Penalty for delay.
408. Attorney prohibited from acquiring claim or demand for purpose of bringing action.
409. Penalty for violation.
410. Limitation.
411. Same rule when party prosecutes in person.
412. Partner of public prosecutor not to defend.
413. Former public prosecutors not to defend.
414. Partners not to appear on opposite sides.
415. Penalty for violation of two preceding sections.
416. Party may appear in person or by attorney.
417. Attorney may defend in person.
418. Judgment lien for compensation.
419. Attorney's or litigant's liability for excess costs.
Part 1Licensing Authorities
101. Name. The name of this Bar shall be the "Dominion of Melchizedek Bar".
102. Seal. The Dominion of Melchizedek shall have a seal, to be kept in the Office of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek, a corporation sole, organized under the laws of the Dominion of Melchizedek, which seal shall be written and appear in the following form: A circular embossed seal bearing the term "BAR ASSOCIATION GOVERNOR DOMINION OF MELCHIZEDEK' and bearing the Seal of Solomon in the centre thereof.
103. Principal Office. The principal office of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar shall be established by the House of Elders of the Dominion in a place convenient to the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association.
104. Service of Process. Service of a lawful citation or any other lawful notice upon the dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association may be had upon the House of Elders of the Dominion of Melchizedek.
105. Purpose. The purpose of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association shall be the advancement of the administration of "Peace" and "Righteousness" introduced by Melchizedek to Abraham in accordance with the revealed Divine Law of the Most High God within the field of jurisprudence; the encouragement of cordial relations between Bench and Bar and the Dominion of Melchizedek citizenry; and the protection of the professional interest of the members of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
106. Governor. The Dominion of Melchizedek House of Elders shall appoint a Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association which shall be a lifetime appointment or explicitly denominated an "appointment at pleasure of the Dominion of Melchizedek House of Elders." The Governor shall preside at all meetings of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar, and in his absence or inability to act, or at his request, the President of Vice-President shall preside.
107. Other Officers Named. Other than the Governor, the Officers of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association shall be a President, a President-Elect, a Vice-President, and a General Counsel. At its regular meeting in sixth month of each year, the dominion of Melchizedek Bar shall elect annually from its membership a President-Elect and a Vice-President in the fashion designated under provisions of Article X of Robert's Rules of Order (1915 ed.). The General Counsel shall be appointed by the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar Association with duties which shall include all of those duties generally expected of and performed by general counsel in private practice.
108. Journal Provided For. A monthly journal devoted to lawful matters and the affairs of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar and its members may be published and circulated by subscription under the direction of the Governor.
109. Supreme court may establish rules. The supreme court may establish rules for the admission of lawyers, attorneys and counselors not inconsistent with this Act.
110. Attorneys' examining board--appointment, quorum, and powers. (1) The supreme court is hereby authorized and empowered to appoint three members of the bar of this country, in good standing, as an examining board to conduct and assist in conducting the examination of applicants for admission to the bar. The court may release, dismiss, or remove any member of said board and appoint other members in his or their stead at any time. (2) A majority of said board shall constitute a quorum and have the power to conduct examinations. (3) The board shall perform such duties and render such assistance in the examinations of applicants as may be prescribed by the court and shall be governed and controlled by such rules as the court may prescribe. It shall be optional with the supreme court to appoint said board or to require the assistance of said board when appointed.
111. Compensation and expenses of members of board. The members of said board shall be entitled to their travel expenses in attending meetings of said board and in conducting such examination and also when away from their homes or places of residence, and shall be paid such compensation for services performed by them as members of said board as may be fixed and determined by the supreme court.
112. Definitions.
A.) the term "lawyer" signifies "attorney at law" and "counselor at law" and comprehends only members of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
B.) the term "member" signifies only members of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
C.) the term "Dominion of Melchizedek Bar" signifies the association of members organized by this Act of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar of 1997, sometimes referred to as "the Act".
D.) the term "Governor" signifies the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
E.) the term "license" signifies only a Certificate of Competence issued by the Office of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
F.) the term "fee" or "charge" by a lawyer, attorney or counselor at law shall only signify an honourarium measured in a just weight and a just measure [e.g. substance such a gold or silver coin generally of numismatic value].
G.) the term "revealed Divine Law" shall include without limitation all provisions of the Holy Bible, and further described the imminent jurist Sir William Blackstone as follows:
"Considering the creator only as being of infinite power, he was able unquestionably to have prescribed whatever laws he pleased to his creature, man, however unjust or severe. But as he is also a being of infinite wisdom, he has laid down only such laws as were founded in those relations of justice, that existed in the nature of things antecedent to any positive precept. These are eternal, immutable laws of good and evil, to which the creator himself in all his dispensations conforms; and which he has enabled human reason to discover, so far as they are necessary for the conduct of human actions. Such among others are these principles: that we should live honestly, should hurt nobody, and should render to every one his due; to which the three general precepts Justinian has reduced the whole doctrine of law. [Juris praecepta, sunt haec, honeste vivere, alterum non laedere, suum cique tribuere.]
. . .This law of nature, being co-eval with mankind and dictated by God himself, is of course superior in obligation to any other. It is binding all over the globe, in all countries, and at all times: no human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this; and such of them as derive their force, and all their authority, mediately or immediately, from this original. . . . The doctrines thus delivered we call the revealed or divine law, and they are to be found only in the holy scriptures. These precepts, when revealed, are found upon comparison to be really a part of the original law of nature, as they tend in all their consequences to man’s felicity. But we are not from then to conclude that the knowledge of these truths was attainable by man’s reason, in its present corrupted state; since we find that, until they were revealed, they were hid from the wisdom of the ages. As then the moral precepts of this law are indeed of the same original with those of the law of nature, so their intrinsic obligation is of equal strength and perpetuity. Yet undoubtedly the revealed law is (humanly speaking) of infinitely more authority than what we generally call the natural law. Because one is the law of nature, expressly declared so to be by God himself; the other is only what, by the assistance of human reason, we imagine to be that law. If we would be certain of the latter as we are of the former, both would have equal authority; but, till then, they can never be put in competition together.
Upon these two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation, depend all human law; that is to say, no human laws should be suffered to contradict these. There is, it is true, a great number of indifferent points, in which both the divine law and the natural law leave man at his own liberty; but which are found necessary for the benefit of society to be restrained within certain limits. And herein it is that human laws have their greatest force and efficacy; for, with regard to such points as are not indifferent, human laws are only declaratory of, and act in subordination to the former. To instance in the case of murder: this is expressly forbidden by the divine, and demonstrably by natural law; and from these prohibitions arises the true unlawfulness of this crime. Those human laws, that annex a punishment to it, do not increase it’s moral guilt, or superadd any fresh obligation in foro conscientiae to abstain it’s perpetration. Nay, if any human law should allow or injoin us to commit it, we are bound to transgress that human law, or else we must offend both the natural and the divine. But with regard to matters that are themselves indifferent, and are not commanded or forbidden by those superior laws; such for instance, as exporting wool into foreign counties; here the inferior legislature has scope and opportunity to interpose, and make that action unlawful which before was not so." 1 Blackstone’s Commentaries 40-42.
Part 2
Licensing by Certificate of Competence
201. Who considered to be practicing law. Any human being who shall hold himself out or advertise as an lawyer, attorney or counselor at law or who shall appear in any court of record or before a judicial body, referee, commissioner, or other officer appointed to determine any question of law or fact by a court or who shall engage in the business and duties and perform such acts, matters, and things as are usually done or performed by a lawyer, attorney or counselor at law in the practice of his profession for the purposes of parts 1 through 3 of this Act shall be deemed practicing law. For purposes of this Act of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar, the term "license" shall at all times be restrictively signified to mean only a "certificate of competence"
202. Who may be admitted as attorney. Any citizen of the Dominion of Melchizedek, or human being who has bona fide declared his or her intention to become a citizen in the manner required by Dominion of Melchizedek, of good moral character, and who possesses the necessary qualifications of learning and ability is entitled to admission as lawyer, attorney and counselor in all the courts of the Dominion.
203. Qualifications, examination, and admission. (1) Each applicant for admission as an attorney and counselor must produce satisfactory testimonials of good moral character, and proof of having attained the aged of twenty-five. (2) Further, he or she must submit proof of having obtained a degree in law from an accredited college or university, or have a degree in business from an accredited college or university and have more than 10 years of business experience. (3) Have successfully passed an exam prepared and given by the attorneys' examining board. However, proof of having obtained a diploma from an accredited college of law or having ever been admitted to practice law entitles that human being to a license to practice law in all the courts of this country, subject to the right of the chief justice to order an examination as in ordinary cases of applicants not having obtained such diploma or evidence. (4) Have not been previously disbarred from practicing law by the supreme court of this country.
204. Application and examination fees. (1) Every applicant for admission to the bar must pay to the clerk of the supreme court at the time he files his application for admission a fee commensurate with the cost of processing the application as determined by the supreme court. However, this fee may be waived at the discretion of the supreme court. (2) In addition to the fee provided for in subsection (I ), the supreme court may charge an examination fee commensurate with the cost of administering the bar examination (3) All money collected from fees herein provided for shall be deposited with the clerk of the supreme court.
205. Certificate of admission and license. If upon examination of an application, the applicant if found qualified, the supreme court must admit him as an attorney and counselor in all the courts of this state and must direct an order to be entered to that effect upon its records, and that a certificate of such record be given to him by the clerk of the court, which certificate is his license.
206. Asseveration Not Oath. Every human being on his admission must make a Solemn Asseveration [distinguished from swearing of any Divinely proscribed secular or other oath] to support first: the revealed Divine Law of the Most High God, to support second: the principles of "Peace and Righteousness" at all times as introduced by Melchizedek to Abraham, and finally to support third: the Constitution of the Dominion of Melchizedek [to the extent the Constitution or its application is not in contradiction to the foregoing revealed Divine Law of the Most High God and the principles of "Peace and Righteousness"; and such solemn Asseveration shall further require each member to declare before the Most High God he shall faithfully discharge the duties of a lawyer, attorney and counselor at law with fidelity to the best of his knowledge and ability. A certificate of such Asseveration shall be filed with the Office of the Governor.
207. Ad hoc admission of attorneys from other countries. Any human being who is authorized to practice law in the highest courts of another foreign country may, upon motion of any lawyer, attorney or counselor at law admitted to practice in the courts of the be permitted by the court to appear as attorney in any action or proceeding in such court and shall, when so permitted, be entitled to the same rights and privileges and be subject to the same duties and obligations with respect to such actions or proceedings as an attorney duly admitted to practice in the courts of this state.
208. Roll of attorneys. The Office of the Governor and the clerk of the supreme court must keep a roll of the lawyers, attorneys and counselors of law admitted to practice, which must be signed by the members admitted before he receives his license.
209. Penalty for practicing without license. If any citizen of the Dominion practices law in any court, without having received a license as lawyer, attorney and counselor, he shall be reprimanded in a manner deemed appropriate by the court.
210. Annual license tax. Every lawyer, attorney or counselor at law admitted by the supreme court to practice his profession within the country is required to pay a license tax measured in a just weight and measure of one troy ounce Gold [Canadian Maple leafs only] per year. The tax is payable to and collected by the Office of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar on or before April 1, of each year.
211. Collection of delinquent license tax. If any practicing lawyer, attorney or counselor at law shall fail, neglect, or refuse to pay to Office of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar the license tax imposed by this Act for a period of 90 days after the same is due and payable, it shall be the duty of the Office of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar to notify of the immediate suspension of his license pending receipt of said tax payment.
212. Allowance of attorneys' fees to unlicensed persons forbidden. It shall be unlawful for any court within this country to allow attorneys' fees in any action or proceeding before said court in which attorneys' fees are allowed by law to either party so such action or proceeding when such party is represented by anyone other than a duly admitted or licensed attorney at law.
Part 3
Disbarment and Suspension
301. Disbarment. (1) The supreme court of the state shall have exclusive jurisdiction to remove or suspend attorneys and counselors at law. (2) An attorney and counselor may be removed or suspended for any of the following causes arising after his admission to practice:
(a) His conviction of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, in which case the record of conviction is conclusive evidence;
(b) Willful disobedience or violation of an order of the court requiring him to do or forbear an act connected with or in the course of his profession which he ought in good faith to do or forbear and any violation of the oath taken by him or of his duties as such attorney and counselor;
(c) Corruptly or willfully and without authority appearing as attorney for a party to an action or proceeding;
(d) Lending his name to be used as a lawyer, attorney and counselor by another human being who is not an attorney and counselor;
(e) Being guilty of deceit, malpractice, crime, or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.
302. Record of conviction. In case of the conviction of an attorney and counselor of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, the clerk of the court in which such conviction is had shall, within 30 days thereafter, transmit to the supreme court a certified copy of the record of conviction.
303. Proceedings required on receipt of record of conviction. The proceedings to remove or suspend an attorney and counselor under this Act must be taken by the court on the receipt of a certified copy of the record of conviction. The proceedings under this Part 3, without a conviction, may be taken by the court for the matters within its knowledge or may be taken upon the information of another.
304. Supreme court to make procedural rules. Subject to the revealed Divine Law of the Most High God contained in the Holy Bible, the Hebrew Maxims of Law hereinafter contained on Exhibit "1" hereto and incorporated herein by reference, and procedures set out in "A Restatement of Rabbinic Civil Law by Emanuel Quint Vols. I-IX, et seq., the supreme court may make rules regulating pleadings, practice, and procedure in such action or proceeding; and in the absence of such rules, the l, subject to approval of the Governor of the Dominion of Melchizedek Bar.
305. Witness fees and expenses. Witnesses on behalf of the complainant in any such action or proceeding shall be entitled to the fees and mileage provided by law for witnesses in civil actions in the civil courts.
306. Judgment. Upon conviction, in cases arising under 301 .(2)(a), the judgment of the court must be that the name of the party be stricken from the roll of attorneys and counselors of the court and that he be precluded from practicing as such attorney or counselor in all the courts of this state. Upon conviction in cases under the other subsections of that section, the judgment of the court may be, according to the gravity of the offense charged, deprivation of the right to practice as attorney or counselor in the courts of this state permanently or for a limited period.
Part 4
Provisions Regulating Practice
401. Authority of attorney. (1) An attorney and counselor has authority to:
(a) Bind his client in any steps of an action or proceeding by his agreement filed with the clerk or entered upon the minutes of the court and not otherwise;
(b) Receive money claimed by his client in an action or proceeding during the pendency thereof or after judgment unless a revocation of his authority is filed and, upon the payment thereof and not otherwise, to discharge the claim or acknowledge satisfaction of the judgment.
(2) The death of a party to an action or proceeding does not revoke the authority of his attorney of record in said action or proceeding, but the authority of the attorney is continued in all respects the same and with like effect as it was prior to the death of such party until such attorney shall withdraw his appearance in said action or proceeding or some other attorney shall be substituted for him or his authority shall be otherwise terminated and entry thereof made to appear in the record of such action or proceeding.
402. Production of proof of authority to court. The court or judge, on motion of either party, may require the attorney of the adverse party to produce and prove the authority under which he appears and may stay all proceedings until such is shown and may at any time summarily relieve a party from the consequences of the acts of an unauthorized attorney.
403. Change of attorney. The attorney in an action or special proceeding may be changed at any time before or after judgment or final determination, as follows:
(1) upon consent of both client and attorney, filed with the clerk or entered upon the minutes;
(2) upon the order of the court, upon the application of either client or attorney, after notice from one to the other.
404. Notice of change. When an attorney is changed as provided in 403, written notice of the change and the substitution of a new attorney or of the appearance of the party in person must be given to the adverse party. Until then he must recognize the former attorney.
405. Death or removal of attorney. When an attorney dies or is removed or suspended or ceases to act as such, a party to an action for whom he was acting as attorney must, before any further proceedings are had against him, be required by the adverse party, by written notice, to appoint another attorney or appear in person.
406. Penalty for deceit. An attorney or counselor who is guilty of any deceit or collusion or consents to any deceit or collusion with intent to deceive the court or a party forfeits to the party injured by his deceit or collusion treble damages. He is also guilty of a misdemeanor.
407. Penalty for delay. An attorney and counselor who willfully delays his client's cause with a view to his own gain or willfully receives money or an allowance for or on account of money which he has not laid out or become answerable for forfeits to the party injured treble damages.
408. Attorney prohibited from acquiring claim or demand for purpose of bringing action.
(1) An attorney and counselor must not directly or indirectly buy or be in any manner interested in buying a bond, promissory note, bill of exchange, book debt, or other thing in action with the intent and for the purpose of bringing an action thereon
(2) An attorney and counselor must not, by himself or by or in the name of another human being, either before or after action brought, promise or give or procure to be promised or given a valuable consideration to any human being as an inducement to placing or in consideration of having placed in his hands or in the hands of another human being a demand of any kind for the purpose of bringing an action thereon. This subsection does not apply to an agreement between attorneys and counselors, or either, to divide between themselves the compensation to be received.
409. Penalty for violation. An attorney and counselor who violates 408 is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be punished accordingly and must be removed from office by the supreme court.
410. Limitation. Sections 407 through 409 do not prohibit the receipt by an attorney or counselor of a bond, promissory note, bill of exchange, book debt, or other thing in action in payment for property sold or for services actually rendered or for a debt antecedently contracted or from buying or receiving a bill of exchange, draft, or other thing in action for the purpose of remittance and without intent to violate any of those sections.
411. Same rule when party prosecutes in person. Sections 407 through 410 apply to a human being prosecuting an action in person who does an act which an attorney and counselor is therein forbidden to do.
412. Partner of public prosecutor not to defend. An attorney and counselor must not directly or indirectly advise concerning, aid, or take any part in the defense of an action or special proceeding, civil or criminal, brought, carried on, aided, advocated, or prosecuted, as attorney general, county attorney, or other public prosecutor, by a human being with whom he is interested or connected, either directly or indirectly, as a law partner; or take or receive, directly or indirectly, from a defendant therein or other human being a fee, gratuity, or reward for or upon any cause, consideration, pretense, understanding, or agreement whatever, express or implied, having relation thereto or to the prosecution or defense thereof.
413. Former public prosecutors not to defend. An attorney and counselor who has brought, carried on, aided, advocated, or prosecuted or has been in anywise connected with an action or special proceeding, civil or criminal, as attorney general, county attorney, or other public prosecutor, must not at any time thereafter, directly or indirectly advise concerning, aid or take any part in the defense thereof; or take or receive, either directly or indirectly, from a defendant therein or other human being a fee, gratuity, or reward for or upon any cause, consideration, pretense, understanding, or agreement, either express or implied, having relation thereto or to the prosecution or defense thereof.
414. Partners not to appear on opposite sides. Whenever a law partnership or any member thereof accepts employment to prosecute or defend any action, civil or criminal, or to advise in relation thereto, no member of said partnership is permitted, then or afterward, to act as attorney or counselor on the side opposite to that upon which such original employment was had. This section does not prevent a human being who has been employed as attorney and counselor in an action or proceeding before becoming a member of a partnership fromappearing and acting therein until its completion.
415. Penalty for violation of two preceding sections. An attorney and counselor who violates either 413 or 414 is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be punished accordingly and must be removed from office by the supreme court.
416. Party may appear in person or by attorney. A party to a civil action including any member who is of full age may prosecute or defend the same in person , in propria persona, or by lawyer or attorney at his election unless he has been judicially declared in the Dominion to by incompetent to manage his affairs. Each provision of this part relating to the conduct of an action wherein the attorney for the party is mentioned includes a party prosecuting or defending in person unless otherwise specially prescribed therein or unless that construction is manifestly repugnant to the context. If a party has an attorney in the action, he cannot appear or act in person where an attorney may appear or act either by special provisions of law or by the course and practice of the court.
417. Attorney may defend in person. This part does not prohibit an attorney or counselor from defending himself in person if prosecuted either civilly or criminally.
418. Judgment lien for compensation. (1) The compensation of an attorney and counselor for his services is governed by agreement, express or implied, which is not restrained by law.
(2) From the commencement of an action or the service of an answer containing a counterclaim, the attorney who appears for a party has a lien upon his client's cause of action or counterclaim which attaches to a verdict, report, decision, or judgment in his client's favor and the proceeds thereof in whose hands they may come. Such lien cannot be affected by any settlement between the parties before or after judgment.
419. Attorney's or litigant's liability for excess costs. An attorney or party to any court proceeding who, in the determination of the court, multiplies the proceedings in any case unreasonably and vexatiously may be required by the court to satisfy personally the excess costs, expenses, and attorney fees reasonably incurred because of such conduct.
Exhibit "1"
Maxims and Rules
"'Human laws are born, live and die,' but a maxim, once ushered into existence, is endowed with a perpetual lease on life. Its form is often so altered as to be irrecognizable, but its spirit continues to live. Many a modern legal maxim which enjoys a wide circulation and has won a fortune of renown for its reputed author, is in reality nothing more than old currency cast in a new die -- the gold of Moses or Solomon remodelled and embellished with the royal insignia of Constantine or Justinian; and we have a reason to believe that many a maxim brought into the world by a Hillel of an Akiba is now current under the superscription of a Coke or a Blackstone. (Footnote 428 omitted). The following are some of the most important maxims and rules, culled from the jurisprudence of the ancient Hebrew sages.
A majority of one is sufficient for acquittal, but it requires a majority of at least two for conviction.
A man is his own kin.
A minor has no discretion. (Footnote 429 omitted)
A person deserves not the title of Man before reaching the age of twenty-five years.
A simultaneous and unanimous verdict of guilty acquits.
A single accuser deserves to be treated as a slanderer. (Footnote 430 omitted)
A Synhedrion executing one human being in the course of every seven years is a murderous tribunal.
A verdict of conviction may be reversed, but not one of acquittal. (Footnote 431 omitted)
A verdict of guilty may not be rendered on the day of trial.
All evidence must be direct, and not circumstantial or presumptive.
All Israelites are responsible for one another. (Footnote 432 omitted)
An equal division of the Court on a verdict is an acquittal.
As Moses sat in judgment without the expectation of material reward, so also must every judge act from a sense of duty only. [House Note: "For he shall compensate a man according to his works, and causes every man to be rewarded according to his ways." Job 34:11.
Be slow in judging. (Footnote 433 omitted)
By punishing criminals the world is benefited.
Collisions with a deaf-mute, or an idiot, or a minor, are always disadvantageous.
Crimes committed under duress are not punishable. (Footnote 434 omitted)
Cross-question the witness closely.
Death atones for sins. (Footnote 435 omitted)
Divulging the individual opinions of judges is slander.
Drink not and thou wilt not sin. (Footnote 436 omitted)
Each witness must be qualified to testify to the whole case, and not only to a part thereof.
Evidence must be heard directly from the mouth of the witnesses, and not through an interpreter or a written document.
Extraordinary times legalize extraordinary punishments. (Footnote 437 omitted)
Fine and flagellation are not imposed together for the same offense. (Footnote 438 omitted)
For conviction it requires a majority of not less than the minimum number of witnesses competent to sustain an accusation.
Having submitted to the judgment of the law, the man is restored to his status as thy brother. [Note: The existence of probation, no matter the disguise, is a violation of this prohibition]
He who buys a Hebrew slave buys himself a master.
He who gives the death-blow is alone responsible. [House Note: In Hebrew society, the injured party is responsible alone for forgiving or carrying out any judgment]
He who swears is ipso facto suspected.
If one witness is found disqualified, the whole party is disqualified.
Immodest behavior is a bar to the witness-stand. (Footnote 439 omitted)
Judges must be exceedingly guarded in their utterances, lest the witnesses learn from them how to answer evasively.
Kill him who unlawfully attempts to kill the. (Footnote 440 omitted) [Note: As contrasted with the Laws of forgiveness taught by Hillel, Rabbi Abba and Yehoshua]
Let justice pierce the mountain.
Let the incorrigible die while in a state of comparative innocence, rather than live and go from bad to worse. (Footnote 441 omitted) [Note: "Before Elijah departed, he said to Reb Shmuel, 'I want to give you some advice that will be useful to you, my friend. Whenever you see a wicked person who is prospering, keep in mind that his wickedness will ultimately work against him. And if you see a righteous person enduring hardships, remember that that person is being saved from something worse. Do not doubt these things any longer. One cannot always understand God's ways.'" [From Tales of Elijah the Prophet Retold by Peninnah Schram, (Jason Aronson, New Jersey, 1991 at p. 6)]
Make a hedge around the law.
Man is to live, and not to die by the observance of the law.
Man's life belongs to god, and only according to the law of God may it be disposed of.
Neither honor or insult the remains of a suicide.
No man convicts himself. (Footnote 442 omitted)
No man is considered guilty until after he is duly proved to be so.
No man may be condemned unless he is present.
No man produces witnesses to convict himself.
No man sinneth unless attacked by idiocy.
No mercy may be shown where it is contrary to justice.
No one is a competent witness whose knowledge of the facts is based on hearsay or conjecture. (Footnote 443 omitted)
No one is responsible for the crimes of another. (Footnote 444 omitted)
No punishment may be inflicted for transgressions not accompanied by bodily action. (Footnote 445 omitted)
None, but the legal executioners, may execute the convict.
None who may be a competent witness in a cause, may be the judge of a cause. (Footnote 446 omitted)
One court may not try two capital cases in one day.
Part of the evidence being invalidated, the whole is invalidated. (Footnote 447 omitted)
Relations and interested persons may not act as judges. (Footnote 448 omitted)
Self-accusation does not convict.
Self-accusation of misdemeanors involving fines exempts the culprit from paying the fine. (Footnote 449 omitted)
Similarity in expressions between witnesses awakens suspicion of conspiracy and coaching.
Testimony must not be heard in the absence of the party concerned.
Testimony to which the law of confutation cannot be fully applied deserves not the name of testimony.
The blood of the victim of false testimony falls upon the heads of the witnesses.
The act of breaking in is the burglar's death warrant.
The cause of a party may not be disposed of in his absence.
The convict must not be kept in suspense.
The drunkard is responsible for his actions. (Footnote 450 omitted)
The end of a period is considered as the beginning thereof.
The hour legalizes extraordinary rigor. (Footnote 451 omitted)
The judge has nothing to judge by but what is before his eyes. (Footnote 452 omitted)
The judge not voting is considered absent.
The judgments for which the judge was paid are void.
The law does not punish for injuries occasioned through fortuitous circumstances. (Footnote 453 omitted)
The less punishment is discharged in the greater.
The person witnessing an act during his minority is not competent to testify thereto, even after reaching his majority.
The public servitor must be possessed of more mental than physical vigor.
The robe of the unfairly elected judge is to be respected not more than the blanket of the ass. [Note: The term "elected" signifies a judge who act of judging is "voluntarily" consented to by both sides in a case. A judge imposed or forced upon any party is not "fairly elected".]
The scholar's popularity with the masses is not always the reward for righteous bearing; often it is the consequence of his failing to notice vices and rebuke them.
The suborned witness is despised even by his suborner.
The Supreme Judge does not punish a person of less than twenty years
The votes of father and son, or of a teacher and pupil, in the same court, are counted as one.
The witness must be fully competent at the time when the crime is committed as well as when he appears to testify to the crime.
The witnesses for the defense are accusers of the prosecution. (Footnote 454 omitted)
The word of the parties to the suit, and not that of counsel, shall be heard by the judges.
There is no agency in crime. (Footnote 455 omitted)
Thine own life may be dearer to thee that that of thy neighbor. (Footnote 456 omitted)
Thoughts are not punishable. (Footnote 457 omitted)
What the witness has once said he may not unsay.
Whatever one observes while in a normal state, and testifies to when in a normal state is legal evidence.
When one can prevent a crime and does not, he is responsible before Heaven. (Footnote 458 omitted)
When the judge is, like a king, well provided for, he will establish the peace of the land on justice; but when, like the priest, he must rely on gifts for his subsistence, he will overthrow it.
Where Heaven sees fit to condone, human tribunals may not punish.
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