DEDICATION OF COURTS BUILDING On September 20, 1967, at 10:30 a.m., the new building located at 717 Madison Place NW., Washington, D.C., was dedicated as the home of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals and the United States Court of Claims. The following special dedication program was prepared and distributed to the participants in the proceedings and the invited guests: THE COURTS The United States Court of Claims was established by Act of Congress on February 25, 1855. It is a constitutional court, and its jurisdiction, which is nationwide, embraces a wide variety of claims against the United States for money damages. Prominent among such claims are those for tax refunds, breach of contract, military and civilian pay claims, and claims for the taking of private property for public use without just compensation, as required by the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution. The court has exclusive jurisdiction of patent and copyright infringement suits against the Federal government and appellate jurisdiction over the Indian Claims Commission. The court is composed of the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who sit in Washington, D.C. There are 15 Commissioners who serve as the trial judges of the court and who preside at the trial of cases both in Washington, D.C., and throughout the country wherever it is most convenient for the parties. Their decisions are reviewed by the seven judges whose final decisions are reviewable only by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals is a constitutional court consisting of a Chief Judge and four Associate Judges who sit en banc in Washington, D.C. It was established by Act of Congress on March 2, 1929, but as the successor to the prior United States Court of Customs Appeals, the origins of its customs appeal jurisdiction are found in the Act of Congress of August 5, 1909. The court's jurisdiction is not limited by territory, but is limited to specialized subject matter which includes (1) appeals from the United States Customs Court, (2) appeals from decisions of the United States Patent Office under the conditions specified in 35 USC 141, and (3) review, on questions of law, of findings made by the Secretary of Commerce XXVII pursuant to the Educational, Scientific and Cultural Importation Act of 1966. The court's decisions are final, subject to review by the Supreme Court of the United States. The court building being dedicated today is the first permanent home for both courts and contains the offices for both as well as their courtrooms and library. THE NEW LAFAYETTE SQUARE During the planning of new Federal buildings for the Lafayette Square area, a decision was made to return to the small scale residential character of the Square which in the 19th century had been a center of Washington's social and diplomatic life. Historically, the Square had reflected such a residential concept with the White House as the natural center of interest until the 1920s when the small scale residential quality-envisioned by early planners-was lost by the construction of multi-story commercial structures around the Square. Following the decision to preserve Lafayette Square at a scale which would frame the White House as a center of interest, the residential character of the facades of Jackson and Madison Place was re-established and new Federal buildings were placed in the background to serve as quiet back-drops for the residential-type structures and as transitions from the large commercial buildings of the surrounding downtown area. The New Executive Office Building on the west side of the square and the Court of Claims and Court of Customs and Patent Appeals on the east side were designed with these objectives in mind. Dark colored Victorian red brick was selected with the guidance of aesthetics and history. The dark color gives the large structures the appearance of receding; light colored material would tend to emphasize them. The nine-story building housing the Courts contains courtrooms for each Court, chambers for judges and commissioners and required ancillary facilities. John Carl Warneck of San Francisco was the architect for the Lafayette Square projects and the Blake Construction Company of Washington the general contractor for the Courts Building and the New Executive Office Building. Prelude PROGRAM UNITED STATES MARINE BAND Procession JUDGES, COMMISSIONERS, AND HONORED GUESTS Parade of Colors Presiding Invocation Presentation of the Building Acceptance for the Courts Remarks PROGRAM-Continued UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES JOINT COLOR DETAIL HONORABLE WILSON COWEN Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Claims HIS EMINENCE PATRICK CARDINAL O'BOYLE HONORABLE LAWSON B. KNOTT, JR. Administrator of General Services HONORABLE EUGENE WORLEY Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Customs and Patent HONORABLE WILSON COWEN Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Claims HONORABLE EARL WARREN Address HONORABLE MARVIN JONES Senior Judge, U.S. Court of Claims Benediction Postlude REVEREND EDWARD G. LATCH, D.D. Chaplain, United States House of Representatives THE UNITED STATES MARINE BAND The proceedings opened as follows: Ladies and gentlemen, the Honorable Wilson Cowen, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Claims, will preside. CHIEF JUDGE COWEN: Ladies and gentlemen, the invocation on this occasion will be by His Eminence, Patrick Cardinal O'Boyle. INVOCATION CARDINAL O'BOYLE: Almighty God, our Maker and our Judge, we dedicate this building in your sight to the administration of justice in accordance with the laws of our beloved country. We come before you at a critical time in our history. It is a time of paradox-of want in the midst of plenty; of wars and violence in an era of worldwide efforts to relieve sickness and privation; of full churches and schools; while defiance of the laws of God and man make a mockery of our learning. We must rekindle this respect for lawful authority. We humbly acknowledge if we are to live again as a civilized, God-fearing people, help us to dedicate ourselves then to this task. Firm indeed, of God, is the anvil of your justice on which truth must be tempered but the hammer of your charity is gentle and its blows are not to punish but only to shape our Destiny according to your Divine Plan. In that spirit, may those who labor here and all who are invested with the solemn duty of administering our laws reflect in their decisions the will of Him who is the author of both justice and law and through whom the two may be joined as one. God bless us all. ADDRESS AND INTRODUCTIONS BY THE HONORABLE WILSON COWEN, CHIEF JUDGE OF THE UNITED STATES COURT OF CLAIMS. CHIEF JUDGE COWEN: It is a disappointment to begin this ceremony with a note of regret because of the fact that our good friend, Chief Judge Worley of the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, could not be here on the day upon which he had set his heart. He is recovering from a major operation and his doctor has forbidden him to attend. Nevertheless, he sent me a message in which he asked to join me and the entire personnel of both courts in extending to all who are present here, a warm-a most cordial welcome. This is a very proud— a very happy day for both courts. For the first time in the existence of either court, we are privileged to occupy a new building which was designed in the beginning to carry out our functions and our duties. We are aware of the fact that we are located in a rather famous neighborhood and at times we are somewhat nervous about that fact. We know that three Presidents of the United States have shown an interest in this building. The site was determined during the administration of President Eisenhower. President Kennedy and Mrs. Kennedy took a very active part in seeing that the building was designed in a way that would preserve the adjacent historic buildings which are to be restored as a part of the Lafayette Square Project. President Johnson and Mrs. Johnson have also evinced a lively interest, not only in this building but in the entire Lafayette Square Project. We are honored today by the presence of many good, great, and distinguished people: Justices of the Supreme Court, Circuit judges, District judges; judges of the Customs Court; judges of the Tax Court and judges of other courts; distinguished members of the Congress; presidents and members of the bar associations; the Attorney General's Assistants and key members of his staff, and high officials in many departments and agencies of the government. If I undertook to introduce all of the distinguished people who should be recognized, I know you would condemn me because of the time that would be expended in presenting about three-fourths of the audience. Therefore, I bow to your implicit wishes by presenting those people on the platform whose duties bring them into a special relationship with the courts, or who have had a direct part in providing for this building. Let us begin with the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court: Mr. Justice John M. Harlan; Mr. Justice Abe Fortas; Mr. Justice Thurgood Marshall; Mr. Justice Stanley Reed (I pause long enough to say that we consider this gentleman an ex officio member of our court because he has sat with us on many occasions); the Honorable Carl Eardley, Assistant Attorney General of the United States, here for the Attorney General; the Honorable Everett B. Jordan of the Senate Committee on Public Works; the Honorable Emanuel Celler, Chairman of the Judiicary Committee of the House of Representatives; the Honorable John J. Rooney, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Judiciary of the Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives; the Honorable Robert T. Ashmore, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Claims of the House Committee on the Judiciary; Mr. John Carl Warnecke, the architect of the building, and Mr. Martin Bender, president of the Blake Construction Company, the contractor and the builder. I am sure all of you know that the plans for this building were prepared under the direction of the General Services Administration, which also supervised the construction and equipped the building. The present head of that organization was not the administrator when the contract was let but he was appointed in time to encounter some of the most difficult problems that arose and to solve them in a very effective way. It is a pleasure to present to you now Mr. Lawson B. Knott, Jr., Administrator of the General Services Administration. ADDRESS OF MR. LAWSON B. KNOTT, JR. Judge Cowen, Chief Justice Warren, Justices of the Supreme Court, Members of Congress, distinguished guests—all. The new Lafayette Square, with roots firmly in the past, comes to life today with this dedication of the home of the United States Court of Claims and the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals. As you inspect the building following this ceremony, I believe you will agree that it is a building admirably suited to their needs, to the conduct of their judicial responsibilities. For the courts and for the rest of us, today's ceremony has further significance-it marks the completion of the first phase of the redevelopment of the east and west sides of Lafayette Square which began with the purchase of some of the properties prior to World War II. The new Executive Office Building across the Square is virtually completed and is being progressively occupied. Renovation of the former residences remaining on Jackson and Madison Places is under way and replacement of compatible structures similar to those dis |