129 Va. 481 | Va. | 1921
delivered the opinion of the court.
The defendants in error, the widow and children of Leroy Harper, deceased, who lost his life while working as an em
In Fitt v. Central Illinois Public Service Co., 273 Ill. 617, 113, N. E. 155, it is held that under section 19 of the Illinois workmen’s compensation act (Laws 1913, p. 347), as amended in 1915 (Laws 1915, p. 408), the circuit court, upon the application for judgment on the award of the industrial board, has no jurisdiction to inquire into. the question whether the industrial board has acted legally in making the award, but is only authorized to enter judgment on the award, because the statute provides other methods by which the action of such board may be reviewed.
• Bernstein v. Brothman, 275 Ill. 290, 114 N. E. 120, also holds that the methods of review provided by the Illinois act are exclusive, and that the circuit court, on an application for a judgment on such award, cannot inquire into the legality of the action of the board.
In the Matter of State Industrial Commission, 224 N. Y. 13, 119 N. E. 1027, it is held that the Court of Appeals of
s/ In Thackster v. Finn, 178 Cal. 270, 173 Pac. 163, it is held that even though an award in favor of an employee of a sub-contractor against the principal contractor would have been annulled by the Supreme Court for want of power in the industrial accident commission to make it, if the proceedings to review the award had been instituted within the time fixed by the statute, still, where no proceeding of review has been inaugurated within the time thus limited, the judgment is not a nullity, but the award is conclusively presumed to be lawful and binding as against any kind of attack, collateral or otherwise. This, it is observed, is a case where, if the statute authorizing the review had been followed, the award would have been annulled because the commission exceeded its jurisdiction.
In Harriss-Irby Cotton Co. v. State, 31 Okl. 603, 122 Pac. 163, it is said that the Supreme Court of Oklahoma, although it has jurisdiction to review some of the orders of the State Corporation Commission, has no such jurisdiction to review an order requiring a cotton gin to be operated by its owner for the accommodation of the public at a fixed price, because the statute under which the commission acted did not provide for an appeal.
In Southern Ry. Co. v. Glenn, 102 Va. 533, 46 S. E. 776, this is said: “The benefit of appeal is a purely statutory right. When parties come to this court to have reviewed the action of a lower court, their only warrant for doing so is the statute, and its terms must be strictly complied with. Section 3454 of the Code of 1887 declares that any party who is a party to any case in chancery, wherein there
In Tyson v. Scott, 116 Va. 243, 81 S. E. 57, the principle is stated thus in the syllabus: “The jurisdiction of this court rests wholly upon the written law, and can be exercised only in obedience to the Constitution and laws passed in pursuance thereof. Statutes of limitation are deemed statutes of repose, and this conception of such statutes applies with peculiar force to limitations upon the right of appeal, or supervision. Such method is exclusive, and neither court nor judge can modify these rules without express statutory authority, and then only to the extent specified.”
The right of appeal, then, is clearly not a. vested right, but is subject to legislative control, and only exists if conferred by Constitution or statute. Sullivan v. Haug, 82 Mich. 548, 46 N. W. 795, 10 L. R. A. 263.
Many pertinent cases from other jurisdictions may be found cited in 3 Corpus Juris, p. 274.
For the plaintiffs in error it is claimed that the statutory authority which is thus shown to be necessary exists, and that it is found in that portion of the Code of 1919, section 6336,
The sections of the act immediately involved are sections 61 and 62, which are as follows:
Sec. 61. Appeals. — The award of the commission, as provided in section 59, if not reviewed in due time, or an award of the commission upon such review, as provided in section 60, shall be conclusive and binding as to all questions of fact; but either party to the dispute may, within thirty days from the date of such award or within thirty days after receipt of notice to be sent by registered mail, of such award, but not thereafter, appeal from the decision of such commission to the circuit court of the county or corporation court of the city in which the alleged accident happened or in which the employer resides or has his principal office; or if the cause be in the city of Richmond,
“Sec. 62. Judgment may be filed. — Any party in interest may file in the circuit or corporation court of the county or city in which the injury occurred, or if it be in the city of Richmond, then in the circuit or law and equity court of said city, a certified copy of a memorandum of agreement approved by the commission, or of an order or decision of the commission, or of an award of the commission unappealed from, or of an award of the commission affirmed upon appeal, whereupon said court shall render judgment in accordance therewith and notify the parties. Such judgment shall have the same effect, and all proceedings in relation thereto shall thereafter be the same, as though said judgment had been rendered in a suit duly heard and determined by said court.”
The question thus presented requires a careful consideration of the purpose of the act as well as of its provisions.
“The first workmen’s compensation law was enacted by Germany in 1884. Since that time compensation acts have been adopted by over fifty countries, comprising all the great industrial nations of the world.
“In the United States, the first general workmen’s compensation act to stand the test of constitutionality was the New Jersey law of 1911. Similar laws have now been adopted by thirty-eight States and three Territories. Congress, in 1916, passed a compensation act covering all civil employees in the service of the Federal government.
“The widespread favor with which these laws have been received is due to the fact that they are the outgrowth of natural conditions, and are based upon principles which men and women have come to regard as just.”
The Virginia act has features which are common to nearly if not quite all such laws, and has for its humane purpose the providing for all workmen coming within its provisions who are injured during the course of their employment of compensation therefor which is certain in amount without deduction. The doctrines of contributory negligence, assumed risk, and all of those defenses which have so frequently defeated recoveries, occupied the time of courts and crowded their dockets are abolished. Some of these advantages are thus summarized by the Virginia commission:
“The compensation system has many advantages over the common and statutory liability laws. These advantages accrue to no one class, but are shared alike by employee, employer and society at large.
“1. The injured employee receives definite and timely relief without the uncertainty and expense of a law suit. Under the older system, only a small percentage of acci
“2. The employer knows that the sums paid by him, or by his insurer, go directly and in full to his injured work-' man. The elimination of waste in the litigation of claims will have a material effect in keeping the cost of compensation within reasonable limits.
“Moreover, the certainty that compensation will be paid is conducive to the contentment of the worker, and the removal of friction promotes harmony and productive efficiency.
“3. Society itself benefits through the elimination, in a large measure, of the expense of negligence cases, estimated to consume from one-fifth to one-third of the time and expense of the courts, and through the reduction of poverty and destitution.” Minor’s Workmen’s Compensation Laws, p. 583.
Bearing in mind the objects in view, it is helpful to consider certain specific provisions of the statute.
Section 12 provides that the rights and remedies granted by the act to an employee coming within its provisions, “shall exclude all other rights or remedies of such employee, his personal representative, parents, dependents or next of kin, at common Jaw or otherwise, on account of such injury, loss of service, or death.” Section 52 creates a commission to be appointed by the Governor, requires each member thereof to devote his entire time to the duties of his office, and forbids his holding any position of trust or profit, or engaging in any occupation or business interfering or inconsistent with his duties as such member. Section 55-a provides, among other things, that “Processes and procedure under this act shall be as summary and simple as reasonably , may be.” Section 58 requires'that immediately after application shall be made for compensation, the commission shall set a date for the hearing, which shall be
Before the act, the plaintiff in an action for personal injury, had his case tried in the circuit or corporation court, with an appeal to this court if the jurisdictional amount was
It may be difficult for those of us who are accustomed to the Virginia practice readily to accede to the view that this court has no jurisdiction in such cases, but we think that this chiefly grows out of that conservatism which constrains many lawyers and judges to adhere too tenaciously' to their previous habits of thought and conduct. That the legislature intended to enact a complete statute, designed to supply an adequate remedy in every case which might arise under it, is manifested by its seventy-nine sections with their multitudinous and detailed provisions. The act creates new rights and provides new remedies whereby they may be asserted and maintained.
The last clause of section 61 is itself most significant. It provides that no employer shall be required to make payment of the award until the questions at issue shall have been fully determined “in accordance with the provisions
This conclusion makes it unnecessary for us to consider the other interesting questions discussed in the briefs.
Dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
Sec. 6336. In what cases petitions for appeal, writ of error, or supersedeas may be awarded. — Any person who thinks himself aggrieved by any judgment, decree, or order in a controversy concerning the title to or boundaries of land, the condemnation of property, the probate of a will, the appointment or qualification of a personal representative, guardian, committee, or curator, or concerning a mill, roadway,‘ferry, wharf, or landing, or the right of the State, county, or municipal corporation to levy tolls or taxes, or involving the construe