Ettinger v Studevent Hole

FACTS:

 Congress passed an act entitled The 1941 Legislature Act also known as “1941 Skip Election Law”
- all city election must be held every 4 years in the same year after the presidential election
 House bill #394 also known as the 1933 Act
- the time for holding the election of all elective officers of all cities in this state except cities of first class
(Indianopolis) shall be changed from 1st Tuesday of Nov 1942 to every first Monday of November every 4th year
starting Nov 1943
 Sec 6 Act 1933 “Separability section”
- if one or more sections, in sentences clauses or phrases of this act shall be declared unconstitutional, such
decision shall in no sense invalidate any other part of this act.
 2 trial court reached different conclusions:
-Marion Circuit Court held the whole act unconstitutional in toto
-Montgomery Circuit Court sustained the whole act by disregarding the words amended by House of Committee
in sec 1

ISSUE:
A. WON the Court has jurisdiction in the case
B. WON the attempted classification of the 1933 Act is repeallable/ unconstitutional
C. WON the Act must be construed to apply to all cities of the state or void in toto

HELD:

A. If the case questions the construction of the law, it will still fall within legislative domain under the doctrine of
separation of powers but if an excision of the integral part of the act changes the scope or subject matter/
territory of the legislative intent w/c was already enacted will fall under judicial legislation and not statutory
construction. Hence the court has jurisdiction in the case
B. In Hale v Mc Gettingan (1856), the court struck out one section of a provision as an invalid classification for
reason of constitutional prohibition, the section maybe viewed as an independent act if the said section is
severable to the integral part of the general act.
C. In State ex rel. Johnson v C.B.Q.Ry (1906) “the whole amendment must stand and fall together. It has been
demonstrated herein that the court cannot declare the exception demonstrated herein that it cannot stand
together. Hence, it must fall. The whole amendment must be applicable to all parts of the state”

The court ruled that the whole act violated sec 23 Art 4 of Consti the judgement of Marion Circuit Court affirmed while
the decree was reversed on Montgomery Circuit Court.