[DOWNLOAD] "Stefonick v. District Court" by Supreme Court of Montana * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Stefonick v. District Court
- Author : Supreme Court of Montana
- Release Date : January 17, 1945
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 67 KB
Description
1. Divorce ? retention of jurisdiction. The district court retains jurisdiction of the wifes motion for attorneys fees and costs on appeal in a divorce suit despite the appeal. 2. Judges ? extent of disqualification. The husbands affidavit of disqualification of the district judge for imputed bias, though it referred only to the wifes motion for attorneys fees and costs on appeal, went to the entire action and, if effective to disqualify the judge, he was thereby disqualified in the entire action and in all matters connected therewith except as provided in the statute. 3. Judges ? disqualification in hearing motion, purpose of. The purposes of including "motion" in the procedural provision that - Page 87 the affidavit of disqualification of the district judge shall be filed before the day appointed for the hearing or the trial of the action, motion or proceeding was to prevent such affidavits from being filed on the day of a hearing, and thereby causing delay, and the provision was not intended to permit disqualification of the judge merely in a particular portion of an action or proceeding. 4. Judges ? no waiver of disqualification or revesting jurisdiction. If the affidavit of disqualification of district judge for imputed bias and prejudice was effective to disqualify him, a subsequent presentation of bill of exceptions to such judge and settlement thereof by him were nullities and could not waive the disqualification or revest such judge with jurisdiction. 5. Judges ? settlement of bill of exceptions after disqualification. A judge may settle a bill of exceptions after he ceases to become a judge only when he ceases to become a judge otherwise than by death or removal from office, and not when for some reason he continues to be a judge but is disqualified to act. The statute providing that if a district judge becomes disqualified a bill of exceptions shall be settled in such manner as the Supreme Court may direct includes any disqualification provided for when the statute was adopted or thereafter provided for by law. 6. Bill of Exceptions ? "disqualified" not limited to certain kinds of disqualification. The statute providing for settlement of bills of exceptions in such manner as the Supreme Court may direct, if the district judge becomes "disqualified," may not be limited in its application to certain kinds of disqualification nor interpreted as meaning physically incapacitated, since, as applied to judges, the word has acquired a definite and technical meaning and must be construed accordingly. 7. Judges ? number of disqualifications. The statutory limitation on the number of disqualifications of judges for bias and prejudice applies to an action or proceeding as a whole and not to separate motions, and requirement that the second or subsequent affidavit of disqualification must be filed within three days after the receipt of the notice of the new judges assumption of jurisdiction refers to the second or subsequent affidavit filed in the entire proceeding. 8. Judges ? right to disqualify statutory. The right to disqualify a judge for bias and prejudice is purely statutory and is waived unless exercised as provided in the statute conferring such right. 9. Judges ? affidavit of disqualification held ineffective. An affidavit of disqualification of a judge for bias and prejudice was ineffective to disqualify the judge of another district called in to try the divorce action following the previous disqualification of two other judges, where such affidavit was not filed within three days after the receipt of the notice of the new judges assumption of jurisdiction, though the affidavit referred only to the motion for attorneys fees and costs on appeal, and was filed the same day as the order to show cause why such motion should not be granted.