United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals

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The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes.

Contents

History

The CCPA began as the United States Court of Customs Appeals, created by the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act of August 5, 1909. It commenced operations the following year, on April 22, 1910. Five judges for the new court were appointed by President Taft: Robert Morris Montgomery, William H. Hunt, James Francis Smith, Orion M. Barber and Marion De Vries. The jurisdiction was originally appeals from decisions of the Board of General Appraisers, and no further appellate review was permitted. This changed in 1914, when writ of certiorari by the United States Supreme Court was allowed. The Patent Act of 1922 expanded the court's jurisdiction to include appeals on questions of law from Tariff Commission findings in proceedings relating to unfair practices in the import trade.

In 1929, the court's name was changed to the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals by an enactment that conferred upon it appeals from the United States Patent Office. These appeals included ex parte patent cases, appeals from interference proceedings, and trademark cases, appeals which theretofore had been heard in United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In the 1929 case Ex Parte Bakelite Corporation, [1] the Supreme Court held that the CCPA was a court formed under Article I of the Constitution. This left the judges unable to sit by designation on regular federal courts, and in an ambiguous situation regarding judicial retirement. This situation was not addressed by Congress until August 25, 1958, when a law was passed deeming the CCPA an Article III court. [2] This law was subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court, which overruled the Bakelite case.

In 1930, the CCPA moved into the Internal Revenue Service Building, where it remained until 1967. The CCPA moved into the National Courts Building (now the Howard T. Markey National Courts Building), which it shared with the United States Court of Claims.

In 1982, the CCPA was abolished by the Federal Courts Improvement Act. Its jurisdiction, docket, and judges were transferred to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Judges

A total of 25 judges were appointed to the CCPA over the life of the court:

#JudgeStateBorn–diedActive service Chief Judge Senior status Appointed byReason for
termination
1 Robert Morris Montgomery MI 1849–19101910–19201910–1920 Taft death
2 Marion De Vries CA 1865–19391910–19221921–1922 Taft resignation
3 Orion M. Barber VT 1857–19301910–19281928–1930 Taft death
4 James Francis Smith CA 1859–19281910–1928 Taft death
5 William Henry Hunt MT 1857–19491910–1911 Taft retirement
6 George Ewing Martin OH 1857–19481911–19241923–1924 Taft elevation to D.C. Cir.
7 Oscar E. Bland IN 1877–19511923–1947 Harding retirement
8 Charles Sherrod Hatfield OH 1882–19501923–1950 Harding death
9 William J. Graham IL 1872–19371924–19371924–1937 Coolidge death
10 Finis J. Garrett TN 1875–19561929–19551937–1955 Coolidge retirement
11 Irvine Lenroot WI 1869–19491929–1944 Hoover retirement
12 Joseph Raymond Jackson NY 1880–19691937–19521952–1969 F. Roosevelt death
13 Ambrose O'Connell NY 1881–19621944–19621962 F. Roosevelt death
14 Noble J. Johnson IN 1887–19681948–19581956–19581958–1968 Truman death
15 Eugene Worley TX 1908–19741950–19721959–19721972–1974 Truman death
16 William Purington Cole Jr. MD 1889–19571952–1957 Truman death
17 Giles Rich NY 1904–19991956–1982 Eisenhower reassignment to Fed. Cir.
18 Isaac Jack Martin MD 1908–19661958–1966 Eisenhower death
19 Arthur Mumford Smith MI 1903–19681959–1968 Eisenhower death
20 J. Lindsay Almond VA 1898–19861963–19731973–1982 Kennedy reassignment to Fed. Cir.
21 Phillip Baldwin TX 1924–20021968–1982 L. Johnson reassignment to Fed. Cir.
22 Donald Edward Lane DC 1909–19791969–1979 Nixon death
23 Howard Thomas Markey IL 1920–20061972–19821972–1982 Nixon reassignment to Fed. Cir.
24 Jack Miller IA 1916–19941973–1982 Nixon reassignment to Fed. Cir.
25 Helen W. Nies MD 1925–19961980–1982 Carter reassignment to Fed. Cir.

Succession of seats

See also

Bibliography

A brief history of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals / by Giles S. Rich. Washington, D.C. : Published by authorization of Committee on the Bicentennial of Independence and the Constitution of the Judicial Conference of the United States : U.S. G.P.O., 1980.

References

  1. Ex Parte Bakelite Corporation, 279 U.S. 438 (1929).
  2. "Public Law 85-755 85th Congress, H. R. 7866, 72 Stat. 848" (PDF).