NUNC PRO TUNC Volume VII, Issue 2 Page 2
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THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF January 2005 THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR Volume VII, Issue 2 THE DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY NUNCNUNC PROPRO TUNCTUNC Message From Our President The Judges and law- Judges, 25 Magistrate Camden and Newark. We yers involved in the activi- Judges, 26 Bankruptcy hope to do this each year. ties of our Society are, as Judges and thousands of • Recently, as a tribute to our beloved Chief Judge lawyers. Today, our Soci- our Judge and lawyer Gerry (1925-1995) elo- ety’s members are fulfilling members, we held a fes- quently said in 1991, only their duty to reach beyond tive reception while unveil- temporary custodians of ourselves, as Judge Gerry ing a reproduction of the the proud traditions of our urged, in the service of the first seal of the Court. Court. Those traditions Court. • On April 21, 2005, we will began 215 years ago when be celebrating our Annual Inside this issue: our first Judge, David Here is what we have been Gala. This time it will be Brearley, convened the first and will be doing: held in Camden to honor session of the Court in • A few weeks ago, we Senior Judge Stanley Brot- Message from the 1 1790. Since then our conducted our first man, who has been on the President Court’s history has been in swearing-in ceremony bench for 30 years. Society honors Judge 1 the custody of 75 District for new lawyers in (see ROBINSON on page 2) Brotman U.S.Attorney-a brief 2 Society to Honor Judge Brotman history The Second Lindbergh 3 On April 21, 2005 the Historical Society will hold a Gala in the Camden Kidnapping Courthouse commemorating Judge Stanley Brotman’s 30 years on the Federal Bench here in New Jersey. Judge Brotman has had an unprecedented career on the bench. His story is highlighted in this first of two articles ten by the Baron de Hirsch Did you know... A Brilliant Career By Thea Parent, law clerk Fund and a handful of other • Judges Brotman and to Judge Brotman philanthropists, they estab- lished a nurturing community Bassler have held the in which to raise children and position first held by United States District lead productive lives. NJ’s first federal Judge Stanley Brotman in- Judge Brotman was im- judge, David Brearley herited a special legacy pressed by his grandfather’s from his grandfather, Abra- • William S. Pennington example of daring and his ham Brotman. As a young served as a judge and restless drive to build. Long his son William Pen- immigrant Abraham estab- Honorable Stanley S. Brotman after the factory had closed nington was the Clerk lished a coat factory in families to the new town of and Abraham had moved to of the Court. Brooklyn, New York, and Brotmanville. The shared Vineland, his compulsion not long thereafter, was • Richard Stockton be- dream of these newcomers persisted to plan neighbor- struck by an idealistic de- came New Jersey’s was to escape the tyranny hoods and build homes with sire. He moved his factory first United States of Europe and to own land his trademark, a pair of stone to a tract of land in Southern Attorney at the ripe in America. The factory posts at the entrance to the New Jersey, and attracted old age of 25! provided the wages to real- driveways. His grandson a small number of immigrant ize their goals. Underwrit- (See BROTMAN, page 3 ) NUNC PRO TUNC Volume VII, Issue 2 Page 2 ROBINSON chives and for public nomination subject to the law enforcement. Continued from page 1 display. confirmation of the United The 1870 Act, together • Through the efforts of We are proud of these States Senate. These with legislation in 1896 and Board member Doug completed projects: early officials, working with- 1906, granted the Attorney Arpert, we are arrang- • Restoration and place- out the aid of full-time As- General authority to super- ing for a trip to the Su- ment of the Eagle at sistant United States Attor- vise criminal and civil pro- preme Court of the the Martin Luther King neys, operated virtually ceedings in all districts. United States to swear Jr., Courthouse. autonomously representing Thus, the days of the in a group of our mem- • The 3 lawyer lounges the federal government in United States Attorneys’ bers in November 7, in each vicinage. matters within their own complete autonomy ended. 2005. • The exhibits in each district. Until 1861, the Being part of a unified sys- • Our long awaited for- vicinage Courthouse. Attorney General had no tem, however, provided mal history of the Court • On the 50th Anniver- supervisory authority over benefits. For example, the entitled, “This Honor- sary of Brown v. Board the United States Attorneys 1896 reforms provided for able Court”, is in the of Education, we con- and had no role in district the appointment of Assis- hands of a publisher ducted a program of activities. Rather, the At- tant United States Attor- following four years of distinguished panelists torney General’s duties neys and established a extensive research and that included Judge were limited to handling writing. The publisher Robert L. Carter, who matters in the United has promised a Fall argued that historic States Supreme Court and 2005 publication. case. serving as counsel to the • We publish a newslet- President and Department ter aptly entitled Nunc We encourage participation heads. The Secretary of Pro Tunc. from our federal bar and State and, subsequently, • Judge Hedges contin- are actively recruiting new the Solicitor of the Treas- ues to collect historical members. Please help our ury oversaw the activities materials for our ar- beloved Society thrive. of the United States Attor- neys . In 1861, Congress enacted legislation that delegated to the Attorney Richard Stockton General “general superin- 1st US Attorney tendence and direction du- The United States Attorney ties” over United States fixed-salary structure. Be- Attorneys. fore 1896, the compensa- ...a brief history In 1870, Congress cre- tion structure of United By Patty Schwartz, in which the United States ated the Department of States Attorneys resem- United States Magistrate shall be concerned . .” Justice [“DOJ”]. Under the bled that of private attor- Judge The statute did not provide “Act to Establish the De- neys. Rather than receiv- partment of Justice” [“the ing a standard salary, they The Judiciary Act of a title for these public ser- 1789 may be best known vants, but subsequent stat- 1870 Act”], Congress were compensated by re- for establishing the federal utes and cases frequently sought to unify the national taining a percentage of judiciary, but it also created referred to them as “district legal agencies and assist recoveries. Under this another post. The Judici- attorneys.” In 1948, the United States Attorneys in funding arrangement, early ary Act specifically pro- Judicial Code formally handling the explosion of United States Attorneys vided for the appointment adopted the term “United post-Civil War litigation were able, and financially in each judicial district of a States Attorney.” involving the United States. needed, to operate private “person learned in the law An early draft of the Ju- The 1870 Act named the practices. Indeed, a review to act as attorney for the diciary Act authorized dis- Attorney General head of of reported cases involving United States . whose trict judges to appoint DOJ, created the Office of United States Attorneys in duty it shall be to prosecute United States Attorneys, the Solicitor General (the New Jersey reveals that in each district all delin- but the final version of the federal government’s attor- those individuals were ac- quents for crimes and of- Act failed to provide explicit ney who handles matters tively litigating matters on fences, cognizable under appointment authority. before the United States behalf of private parties. the authority of the United Thus, this power rests with Supreme Court), and gave Concern that this method States, and all civil actions the President, with each DOJ control over federal (See US ATTORNEY, page 4) NUNC PRO TUNC Volume VII, Issue 2 Page 3 Brotman turned to complete his un- on the recommendation of had worked tirelessly for Continued from page 1 dergraduate studies at Senator Clifford Case, many years. Judge Brot- Yale. Brotman was appointed to man served as Acting grew up believing that a As a child, Judge Brot- the District Court for the Chief from December 1989 man should take chances man wanted to become a District of New Jersey in to August of 1992, when in pursuit of constructive lawyer to emulate his fa- Camden by President Ge- the President named a per- goals. vorite uncle, Aaron Brot- rald Ford, in 1975. Since manent local resident to On December 7, 1941, man, who had died at the 1980, in addition to his du- the vacancy. Japan attacked Pearl Har- age of twenty-nine. Brot- ties in New Jersey, Judge bor, and in 1942, when he man earned his L.L.B. de- Brotman has also been was eighteen years old, gree at the Harvard Law temporarily designated by Though St. Croix was Stanley Brotman inter- School in 1950, and was the Third Circuit to serve 80 percent devastated rupted his college educa- admitted to the New Jersey on the District Court of the and without electricity, tion to join the United Bar in November of that Virgin Islands to render ... within 36 hours the States Army. He was part year. His plans to practice assistance as may be re- Judge returned to of a highly motivated gen- law were postponed when quired from time to time.