The power of the circuit courts of the United States to issue
the writ of mandamus is confined exclusively to those cases in
which it may be necessary to the exercise of their
jurisdiction.
This case came up from the Circuit Court for the District of
Ohio upon a certificate stating that the judges of that court were
divided in opinion upon the question whether that court had power
to issue a writ of mandamus to the register of a land office in
Ohio
Page 11 U. S. 505
commanding him to issue a final certificate of purchase to the
plaintiff for certain lands in that state.
JOHNSON, J. delivered the opinion of the Court as follows:
I am instructed to deliver the opinion of the Court in this
case. It comes up on a division of opinion in the Circuit Court of
Ohio upon a motion for a mandamus to the register of the land
office, at Marietta, commanding him to grant final certificates of
purchase to the plaintiff for lands to which he supposed himself
entitled under the laws of the United States.
This Court is of opinion that the circuit court did not possess
the power to issue the mandamus moved for.
Independent of the particular objections which this case
presents from its involving a question of freehold,
Page 11 U. S. 506
we are of opinion that the power of the circuit courts to issue
the writ of mandamus is confined exclusively to those cases in
which it may be necessary to the exercise of their jurisdiction.
Had the 11th section of the Judiciary Act covered the whole ground
of the Constitution, there would be much reason for exercising this
power in many cases wherein some ministerial act is necessary to
the completion of an individual right arising under laws of the
United States, and the 14th section of the same act would sanction
the issuing of the writ for such a purpose. But although the
judicial power of the United States extends to cases arising under
the laws of the United States, the legislature have not thought
proper to delegate the exercise of that power to its circuit courts
except in certain specified cases. When questions arise under those
laws in the state courts and the party who claims a right or
privilege under them is unsuccessful, an appeal is given to the
Supreme Court, and this provision the legislature has thought
sufficient at present for all the political purposes intended to be
answered by the clause of the Constitution which relates to this
subject.
A case occurred some years since in the Circuit Court of South
Carolina, the notoriety of which may apologize for making an
observation upon it here. It was a mandamus to a collector to grant
a clearance, and unquestionably could not have been issued but upon
a supposition inconsistent with the decision in this case. But that
mandamus was issued upon the voluntary submission of the collector
and the district attorney and in order to extricate themselves from
an embarrassment resulting from conflicting duties.
Volenti non
fit injuria.