Chap. 321.—An ACT to amend and re-enact Section 7 of chapter 5, and Section
2 of chapter 10, of an act entitled “An act to incorporate the city of Dan-
ville”, approved February 17, 1890, as heretofore amended, relating to the
civil justice and justices of the peace for the said city, and authorizing the
council of the said city to consolidate the offices of civil justice and police
justice and to designate the incumbent of such new office the trial justice
of the city of Danville, to prescribe the powers, duties, and jurisdiction of
the said trial justice; and to repeal acts and parts of acts inconsistent with
this act. [HB 546]

Approved March 29, 1938

1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, That section
seven of chapter five, and section two of chapter ten, of an act entitled
an act to incorporate the city of Danville, approved February seven-
teenth, eighteen hundred and ninety, as heretofore amended, be
amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

CHAPTER V

Section 7. The office of civil justice of the city of Danville is
hereby created. Such civil justice shall be appointed by the corporation
court of Danville, or by the judge thereof in vacation, and shall hold
office for a term of four years, or until his successor be appointed and
qualified, the first such term to commence on July first, nineteen hun-
dred and thirty-eight. Any vacancy in the office of civil justice shall
be filled for the unexpired term by the said corporation court or by the
judge thereof in vacation.

Such civil justice shall be a resident of the city of Danville for at
least six months preceding the commencement of his term of office;
and during such term he shall reside within the city of Danville. Such
civil justice shall not appear as counsel in any case pending in his
court or on appeal or removal therefrom, nor shall he be permitted or
authorized to accept or receive any claim or evidence of debt for col-
lection where the enforcement of such claim or evidence of debt is
within the exclusive original jurisdiction of his court. Such civil justice
may be removed from office in such manner and for such causes as
is now or may hereafter be provided for the removal of other State,
county, city, town and district officers.

The said corporation court, or the judge thereof in vacation, shall
appoint a substitute civil justice, having the same qualifications herein
prescribed for the civil justice, and may at any time revoke such ap-
pointment, and may make a new appointment in the event of such
revocation, or of the death, absence or disability of such substitute
civil justice. In the event of the inability of the civil justice to perform
the duties of his office, by reason of sickness, absence, vacation, interest
in the proceedings or parties before his court, or otherwise, such sub-
stitute civil justice shall perform the duties of such office during such
inability, and shall receive for his services a per diem compensation
equivalent to one twenty-fifth of the monthly installment of the salary
of the civil justice. For each day in excess of fifteen within a single
year that such substitute civil justice is required to act, the amount of
his compensation as above provided shall be deducted from the salary
of the civil justice. While acting as such civil justice, the substitute
civil justice shall perform the same duties, have the same jurisdiction,
exercise the same powers and authority, and be subject to the same
obligations as provided herein in respect to the civil justice. The civil
justice or the substitute civil justice, while acting as civil justice, may
perform all acts, with reference to the proceedings, acts and judgments
of the other, in the same manner and with the same force and effect,
as if such proceedings, acts and judgments were his own.

Before entering upon the performance of their duties, the civil
justice and the substitute civil justice, and clerk, shall take the oath
required by law of other judicial officers, and shall enter into bond be-
fore the corporation court of Danville, in the penalty of not less than
five hundred dollars nor more than two thousand dollars in the discre-
tion of the court, with surety to be approved by said court, and condi-
tioned for the faithful performance of their duties.

The civil justice shall receive such salary as may be fixed by the
council, but not less than twenty-four hundred nor more than thirty-
six hundred dollars per annum. Within the limits set, the council
may at any time increase such salary, but shall not make any diminu-
tion effective for any portion of the term within which such diminution
is resolved upon, unless the then incumbent civil justice consent to
such diminution. The salary of the civil justice shall be paid in monthly
installments, out of the treasury of the city of Danville. The civil
justice shall receive for his services no compensation other than the
salary herein provided.

The civil justice shall be a conservator of the peace within the
limits of the city of Danville, and shall exercise in civil matters only
the same powers and jurisdiction, either exclusively or concurrently
with the circuit court and corporation court of Danville (and saving
to parties the same rights of removal or appeal from said justice to
said courts), as the Code of Virginia does now or hereafter may confer
on trial justices for the several counties. All general legislation now
or hereafter applicable to trial justices, except with regard to criminal
jurisdiction, whether conferring powers, imposing duties, excluding
other individuals from performing functions assigned to such justices,
establishing fees or costs to be taxed, or otherwise, shall in the
absence of a contrary provision apply equally to the civil justice of
the city of Danville.

The civil justice shall appoint a clerk who shall be designated in
process issued by him as clerk of the civil justice court, and who
shall hold office at the pleasure of such civil justice, and shall receive
such salary as the council may fix, but not less than twelve hundred
nor more than twenty-one hundred dollars per annum, payable in
monthly installments out of the treasury of the city.

Such clerk shall be a conservator of the peace within the limits
of the city of Danville, and may within said limits issue warrants and
processes and shall in all respects possess the same privileges, and be
subject to the same duties, in civil matters only, as now are or here-
after may be conferred or imposed upon clerks of the trial justice
courts of the various counties, by the provisions of the Code of Virginia.

In the event of disability of such clerk to perform the duties of his
office, by reason of sickness, absence, vacation or otherwise, the civil
justice may appoint a substitute clerk who, having qualified and given
bond as required of the clerk hereunder, shall perform all the duties
of the office during such disability, and shall receive for his services
a per diem compensation equivalent to one-twenty-fifth of a monthly
installment of the salary of the clerk, payable as said salary is herein
provided to be paid. For each day in excess of fifteen within a single
year that such substitute clerk is required to act, the amount of his
compensation as above provided shall be deducted from the salary of
the clerk.

While acting as such, the clerk or substitute clerk may perform all
acts with reference to proceedings or duties of the other in the same
manner and with the same effect as if they were his own.

Such clerk or substitute clerk shall receive no compensation for
his services other than the salary above provided. ‘They shall deliver
all fees collected by them to the civil justice for distribution in the
same manner as provided for other fees collected by the civil justice.

The council of the city of Danville shall provide a suitable court
room and quarters for said civil justice and clerk in the municipal build-
ing of the city of Danville and the hearing and trial of all matters
cognizable by said civil justice shall be in said court room and quarters.
The council shall provide such books, stationery and supplies as may
be necessary, and these shall be kept by the civil justice subject to the
supervision of the corporation court of Danville. The docket of the
civil justice court and all papers thereof shall be kept in the form and
manner provided for those of trial justices in the several counties.

All fees collected by the civil justice or his clerk shall be paid
promptly into the treasury of the city of Danville.

The council may at any time consolidate the offices of civil justice
and police justice, and the incumbent of the single office thereby created
shall be known as the trial justice of the city of Danville; in which
event the term of office of said civil justice shall terminate immediately
upon the appointment and qualification of a trial justice as hereinafter
provided for, and the first term of such trial justice shall be for the
unexpired term of the civil justice. Subject .to this provision, the
term of office of such trial justice shall be four years, in the same
manner hereinbefore provided in the case of the civil justice.

Such trial justice shall be appointed in the same manner and shall
possess the same qualifications as prescribed for the civil justice and
shall in addition thereto be an attorney at law licensed to practice law
in Virginia. The powers, duties and jurisdiction of such trial justice,
and the conduct of his office in all respects, shall be as the Code of
Virginia does now or hereafter may provide in the case of trial justices
of the several counties, provided, that the territorial extent of his
jurisdiction in criminal matters shall be the same as that of the cor-
poration court of Danville. Such trial justice shall not, during his term
of office, engage in the practice of law in any form. The trial justice
shall be provided with a court room, quarters and supplies such as
are herein required of the council of the city of Danville in the case
of a civil justice.

The corporation court of Danville, or the judge thereof in vacation,
shall appoint a substitute trial justice in the same manner, as set out
herein with respect to a substitute civil justice, but the qualifications
for said substitute trial justice shall be the same as herein provided
for the trial justice. ,

Such trial justice, substitute trial justice, clerk and deputy clerk,
if any, shall enter into bond as provided in the case of the civil
justice, substitute civil justice, and clerk.

Such trial justice shall receive such salary as may be fixed by the
council, but not less than thirty-six hundred nor more than forty-
eight hundred dollars per annum. Unless otherwise specified, all pro-
visions of the present section relating to the civil justice, his substitute,
his clerk, or the conduct of his office in any way, shall apply, mutatis
mutandis, to such trial justice and his office.

Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in the case of
trial justice courts of the several counties, all fees collected by the
trial justice, or any officer of his court, except such fees as belong to
officers, other than the-trial justice, his clerk, and the Commonwealth’s
attorney, shall be promptly paid. over in full to. the treasury of ‘the
city of Danville, except in such cases as the general law may provide
for the payment of said fees or any part thereof, into the State treasury.

The clerk of the police court of Danville at the time the office of
trial justice begins to function as provided herein, shall be the first
clerk of the trial justice court, and shall not be involuntarily removed
from said clerkship by the trial justice within a period of three years.
Thereafter, the trial justice shall have such power over his clerk as is
herein provided in the case of the civil justice.

The clerk of the trial justice court shall receive such salary as the
council may fix, but not less than twenty-one hundred nor more than
twenty-seven hundred dollars per annum; provided that if the corpora-
tion court of Danville or the judge thereof in vacation shall at any
time certify, by an order entered in its common law order book, that
it is reasonably necessary for the prompt and proper dispatch of the
business of the trial justice court to provide the clerk thereof with
one or more deputies, the trial justice shall appoint such deputy or
deputies in the same manner provided for the appointment of the clerk.
Each such deputy shall receive such salary as the council may provide,
payable monthly, but not less than nine hundred nor more than fifteen
hundred dollars per annum.

The clerk of the civil justice court (or of ex trial justice court,
when and if such shall be created as hereinbefore provided) and the
substitute clerk on days when he acts as such, shall have concurrent
jurisdiction with the police or trial justice of said city, to admit to
bail all persons charged with offenses against the city ordinances, and
persons charged with criminal offenses under the laws of Virginia, not
punishable with death or confinement in the penitentiary, pending trial
or examination before the police or trial justice, also to recognize or
commit persons charged with such offenses to jail for trial or examina-
tion before the police or trial justice. Such clerk or substitute clerk
as above provided shall have also concurrent jurisdiction with the police
or trial justice of the city of Danville to issue warrants for all offenses
against the ordinances of the city of Danville, committed within the
city of Danville, and to issue criminal warrants for all offenses against
the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, committed within said
city of Danville, or within one mile of the corporate limits thereof.

CHAPTER X

Section 2. No justices of the peace shall hereafter be elected in
the city of Danville. Justices of the peace elected in said city at the
regular November election of nineteen hundred and thirty-seven shall
hold office for the terms for which they were elected, but such justices
shall exercise jurisdiction to try and decide civil cases only until
June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and thirty-eight. Any cases pending
for trial before any of such justices, and not disposed of on the date
named, shall be transferred to the civil justice court, and any applica-
tion made after that date to appeal or reopen a case theretofore tried
by a justice of the peace shall be addressed to the civil justice, to whom
the justice before whom such case was first tried shall deliver all papers
in the case. After the date named, such justices of the peace shall only
have jurisdiction, to be exercised concurrently with the clerk of the
civil justice court, to issue warrants in civil cases. All warrants issued
by said justices shall be made returnable before the civil justice for
trial, decision, and execution. a Lh

Nothing herein contained shall be construed to deprive the Juve-
nile and Domestic Relations Court of Danville of any of the powers or
jurisdiction now exercised by it or conferred upon it, nor to in any
way change the existing method of selection or appointment of the
Judge of said Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.

2. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with any of the provisions
of this act, are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.