Hugo Black

“ I find it inconsistent with a fair system of justice to throw out a litigant's case because his lawyer, due to negligence, or misunderstanding, or some other reason fails to satisfy one of many procedural time limits. If a pound of flesh is required because of negligence of a lawyer, why not impose the penalty on him and not his innocent client?
As I have previously stated, 'The filing of court papers on time is, of course, important in our court system. But lawsuits are not conducted to reward the litigant whose lawyer is most diligent or to punish the litigant whose lawyer is careless. ”

“ The conflict between the interest of the court clerk in the timely filing of papers and the interest of the citizen in having his lawsuit tried should be resolved in favor of the citizen, not the court clerk. ”

“ Procedural paper requirements should never stand as a series of dangerous hazards to the achievement of justice through a fair trial on the merits.' Beaufort Concrete Co., supra, 384 U.S. at 1006, 86 S.Ct. ”