Abolition of the Commerce Court
Since 1802 Congress has many times exercised its power to constitute inferior courts, but not until 1913 did it again abolish a court. This was the unfortunately launched Commerce Court from which so much was expected and so little came. Again, as in 1802, there was a constitutional debate on the power of Congress to abolish courts without providing for the displaced judges, but unlike the act of 1802 the act of 1913[99] provided for the redistribution of the Commerce Court judges among the Circuit Courts of Appeals and the transfer of its jurisdiction to the district courts.[100]
COMPENSATION
The prohibition against the diminution of judicial salaries has presented very little litigation. In 1920 in Evans v. Gore[101] the Court invalidated the application of the Income Tax as applied to a federal judge, over the strong dissent of Justice Holmes, who was joined by Justice Brandeis. This ruling was extended in Miles v. Graham[102] to exempt the salary of a judge of the Court of Claims appointed subsequent to the enactment of the taxing act. Evans v. Gore was disapproved and Miles v. Graham in effect overruled in O'Malley, Collector of Internal Revenue v. Woodrough,[103] where the Court upheld section 22 of the Revenue Act of 1932 (now 26 U.S.C.A. 22 (a)) which extended the application of the Income Tax to salaries of judges taking office after June 6, 1932. Such a tax was regarded neither as an unconstitutional diminution of the compensation of judges nor as an encroachment on the independence of the judiciary.[104] To subject judges who take office after a stipulated date to a nondiscriminatory tax laid generally on an income, said the Court, "is merely to recognize that judges are also citizens, and that their particular function in government does not generate an immunity from sharing with their fellow citizens the material burden of the government whose Constitution and laws they are charged with administering."[105]
Diminution of Salaries
The Appropriations Act of 1932 reduced "the salaries and retired pay of all judges (except judges whose compensation may not, under the Constitution, be diminished during their continuance in office)," by 8-1/3 per cent if below $10,000, or to $10,000 if above that figure. While this provision presented no questions of its own constitutionality, it did raise the question of what judges' salaries could be constitutionally reduced. In O'Donoghue v. United States[106] the section was held inapplicable to the salaries of judges of the courts of the District of Columbia on the ground that as to their organization and tenure and compensation, Congress was limited by the provisions of article III. In Williams v. United States,[107] on the other hand, it was ruled that the reduction was applicable to the salaries of the judges of the Court of Claims, that being a legislative court created in pursuance of the power of Congress to pay the debts of the United States and to consent to suits against the United States. As such it is not within the provisions of article III respecting the tenure and compensation of judges.
COURTS OF SPECIALIZED JURISDICTION
By virtue of its power "to ordain and establish" courts Congress has occasionally created courts under article III to exercise a specialized jurisdiction. Otherwise these tribunals are like other article III courts in that they exercise "the judicial power of the United States," and only that power, that their judges must be appointed by the President and the Senate and must hold office during good behavior subject to removal by impeachment only, and that the compensation of their judges cannot be diminished during their continuance in office. One example of such courts was the Commerce Court created by the Mann-Elkins Act of 1910,[108] which was given exclusive jurisdiction of all cases to enforce orders of the Interstate Commerce Commission except those involving money penalties and criminal punishment; of cases brought to enjoin, annul, or set aside orders of the Commission; of cases brought under the act of 1903 to prevent unjust discriminations; and of all mandamus proceedings authorized by the act of 1903. This court actually functioned for less than three years, being abolished in 1913, as was mentioned above.
The Emergency Court of Appeals of 1942
Another court of specialized jurisdiction but created for a limited time only was the Emergency Court of Appeals organized by the Emergency Price Control Act of January 30, 1942.[109] By the terms of the statute this court consisted of three or more judges designated by the Chief Justice from the judges of the United States district courts and circuit courts of appeal. The Chief Justice was authorized to designate one of the judges as chief judge, to designate additional judges from time to time, and to revoke designations. The chief judge in turn was authorized to divide the Court into divisions of three or more members each, with any such division empowered to render judgment as the judgment of the Court. The Court was vested with jurisdiction and powers of a district court to hear appeals filed within thirty days against denials of protests by the Price Administrator and with exclusive jurisdiction to set aside regulations, orders, or price schedules, in whole or in part, or to remand the proceeding. But no regulation or price schedule could be set aside or enjoined unless the Court was satisfied that it was contrary to law or was arbitrary or capricious. Even then the effectiveness of a restraining order was to be suspended for thirty days and, if appealed to the Supreme Court within thirty days, until its final disposition. Although the act deprived the district courts of the power to enjoin the enforcement of orders and price schedules, it vested them with jurisdiction to enforce the act and orders issued thereunder in actions brought by the Administrator to enjoin violations and to try criminal prosecutions brought by the Attorney General. Since the Emergency Court of Appeals, subject to review by the Supreme Court, was given exclusive jurisdiction to determine the validity of any order issued under the act, it resulted that the district courts were deprived of the power to inquire into the validity of orders involved in civil or criminal proceedings in which they had jurisdiction.[110]