Hugo Black

“ Having several ways in which it could have heard the merits of petitioner's constitutional claim, the Court of Appeals, now followed by this Court I regret to say, chose to interpret the Rules not so as to reach, but rather to defeat, a 'just determination' of this case.
Throughout history men have had to suffer from legal systems which worshipped rigid formalities at the expense of justice. ”

“ It is particularly abhorrent to think that such a rule can be enforced in the federal court where, as here, the sole reason for cutting off the defendant's right of appeal to the Court of Appeals is the fact that, after the defendant has decided to appeal, the lawyer to whom he entrusts the duty of physically transporting his notice of appeal to the Court of Appeals fails to get it there because he is taken ill. ”

“ Surely the rule in criminal cases should not be more strictly applied. Even more odd is the fact that this petitioner, because he had a lawyer, is worse off than a defendant who does not have a lawyer. ”