his present Majesty as relates to the law for the relief of insolvent No. VIII. debtors, shall be and the same are hereby continued accordingly for one 3 & 4 W. 4, year from the passing of this act, and until the end of the then next session of parliament. c. 56. [No. IX.] 4 & 5 W. IV. c. 79.-An Act to amend the Law relating to Insolvent Debtors in India. [14th August 1834.] [No. X.] 5 & 6 W. IV. c. 70.-An Act for abolishing, in for a debt not 81. 6s. 8d. WHEREAS his Majesty was pleased, by letters patent bearing date on the sixth day of June one thousand eight hundred and thirtythree, under the great seal appointed by the treaty of union to be kept and made use of in place of the great seal of Scotland, to appoint certain commissioners with instructions to inquire, inter alia, as to the present form of enforcing judicial decrees by the diligence of horning and caption and imprisonment, and the expediency of any alteration in the law or forms touching such proceedings:" And whereas the said commissioners have made a report, from which it appears that great hardship is frequently suffered by poor persons in consequence of imprisonment for civil debts to a small amount, without producing thereby any adequate benefit to their creditors: And whereas it is expedient that a remedy should be provided: Be it therefore enacted, &c. That from No person to and after the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and be imprisoned thirty-six it shall not be lawful to imprison any person or persons on account of any civil debt which shall not exceed the sum of eight pounds exceeding six shillings and eight-pence sterling, exclusive of interest and expences thereon Provided that it shall be lawful to imprison debtors on debts incurred or which may become due under contracts made before the passing of this act in like manner as if this act had not been passed; provided always, that imprisonment for such debts shall commence before the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and forty. II. That from and after the first day of January one thousand eight After 1st Jan. hundred and thirty-six it shall not be lawful for any magistrate, or 1836 gaolers keeper of a prison, or other officer having the charge of any prison, in not to receive Scotland, to receive into such prison, or for any messenger at arms or tody any perother officer of the law to apprehend or detain in custody the person of son for a debt any debtor or alleged debtor for a civil debt of an amount not exceeding not above eight pounds six shillings and eight-pence sterling, exclusive of interest 81. 6s. 8d. and expences thereon, in virtue of letters of caption, act of warding, decree of a small debt court, or other warrant, unless in the case of debts contracted before the passing of this act as aforesaid. into their cus III. That on application made to the sheriff of the county in which Sheriff or mathe prison shall be situated, or to the magistrates having charge of any gistrates may prison, by any prisoner incarcerated therein, showing that he is impri- direct the dissoned or detained in gaol for a civil debt or debts contrary to the provi- charge of any sions of this act, such sheriff or magistrates shall cause intimation to person impribe made to the incarcerating creditor or creditors, upon induciæ of six soned for a less days after intimation; and on being satisfied that the statement of the prisoner is consistent with truth, such sheriff or magistrates shall without delay grant warrant for his liberation in so far as regards the debt due to such creditor. amount. No. X. 5 & 6 W. 4, c. 70. IV. That it shall not be lawful for any person to acquire from third parties, by assignation or otherwise, except by marriage or inheritance, one or more civil debts of or below the amount of eight pounds six shillings and eight-pence sterling, against any one individual, to the Persons not to effect of accumulating such debts into one decree or warrant or writ, or acquire debts of adding the same to debts previously due to him of or below the said under sum be- amount, for the purpose of defeating this act, by imprisoning the debtor fore specified, for such accumulated debts. except by marriage or inheritance. Not to affect recovery of fines or forfeitures. V. That nothing in this act contained shall affect obligations ad facta præstanda, or the right of his Majesty or his officers, or the fiscals of courts of law, or others, to imprison as formerly, or on account of taxes or penalties due to the revenue, or on account of any fines or forfeitures imposed or hereafter to be imposed by law, or apply to imprisonment for poor rates or local taxation, or to imprisonment for sums decerned for aliment. PART IV. CLASS IV. OUTLAWRY [No. I.] 2 W. IV. c. 39.--An Act for Uniformity of Process in Personal Actions in His Majesty's Courts of Law at Westminster. [23rd May 1832.] V. That upon the return of non est inventus (1) as to any defendant Proceedings to against whom such writ of capias shall have been issued, and also upon outlawry. the return of non est inventus and nulla bona as to any defendant against whom such writ of distringas as herein-before mentioned shall have issued whether such writ of capias or distringas shall have issued against such defendant only, or against such defendant and any other person or persons, it shall be lawful, until otherwise provided for, to proceed to outlaw or waive such defendant by writs of exigi facias and proclamation, and otherwise, in such and the same manner as may now be lawfully done upon the return of non est inventus to a pluries writ of capias ad respondendum issued after an original writ: provided always, that every such writ of exigent proclamation, and other writ subsequent to the writ of capias or distringas, shall be made returnable on a day certain in term; and every such first writ of exigent and proclamation shall bear teste on the day of the return of the writ of capias or distringas, whether such writ be returned in term or in vacation; and every subsequent writ of exigent and proclamation shall bear teste on the day of the return of the next preceding writ; and no such writ of capias or distringas shall be sufficient for the purpose of outlawry or waiver if the same be returned within less than fifteen days after the delivery thereof to the sheriff or other officer to whom the same shall be directed. VI. That after judgment given in any action commenced by writ of Proceedings to summons or capias under the authority of this act, proceedings to out- outlawry may lawry or waiver may be had and taken, and judgment of outlawry or be had after waiver given, in such manner and in such cases as may now be lawfully judgment given done after judgment in an action commenced by original writ: provided under the aualways, that every outlawry or waiver had under the authority of this thority of this act shall and may be vacated or set aside by writ of error or motion, in like manner as outlawry or waiver founded on an original writ may now be vacated or set aside. act. VII. That for the purpose of proceeding to outlawry and waiver upon Filazer to be such writs of capias or distringas returnable in the court of exchequer, appointed in it shall and may be lawful for the lord chief baron of the said court, and the court of he is hereby required to appoint from time to time a fit person, holding exchequer. some other office in the said court, to execute the duties of a Filazer, exigenter, and clerk of the outlawries in the same court. (1) Where the plaintiff's attorney knew the defendant's attorney, and delivered a capias to the sheriff, with directions to return the same non est inventus, the court thought this proceeding, without making any application to the defendant's attorney, was an abuse of the process of the court, and made a rule absolute for setting aside the outlawry with costs; Pijou v. Drummond, 1 Bing. N. C. 354. PART IV. CLASS V. Mode of pro PROCEEDINGS AGAINST PERSONS HAVING PRIVILEGE [No. I.] 2 W. IV. c. 39.-An Act for Uniformity of Pro- IX. That in all such actions wherein it shall be intended to proceed ceeding against against a member of parliament according to the provisions of the said statute made in the sixth (1) year of the reign of his late Majesty king George the Fourth, the process shall be according to the form contained in the said schedule marked No. 6, and which process and a copy thereof shall be in lieu of the summons, or original bill and summons, and copy thereof, mentioned in the said statute (2). a member of SCHEDULE. No. 6. Writ of Summons to be served on a Member of Parliament in order to enforce the Provisions of the Statute 6 G. 4, c. 16, s. 10. WILLIAM the fourth, etc. To C. D. of, etc. greeting: esquire, having privilege of parliament, We command you, that within one calendar month next after personal service hereof on you, you do cause an appearance to be entered for you in our court of in an action [on promises, debt, etc. as the case may be], at the suit of A. B.; and you are hereby informed, that an affidavit of debt for the sum of hath been filed in the proper office, according to the provisions of a certain act of parliament made and passed in the sixth year of the reign of his late Majesty king George the fourth, intituled An Act to amend the Laws relating to Bankrupts, and that unless you pay, secure, or compound for the debt sought to be recovered in this action, or enter into such bond as by the said act is provided, and cause an appearance to be entered for you, within one calendar month next after such service hereof, you will be deemed to have committed an act of bankruptcy from the time of the service hereof. Witness at Westminster the day of N. B.-This writ is to be served within four calendar months from the date thereof, including the day of such date, and not afterwards. Direction. This Summons is to be indorsed with the Name of the Plaintiff or his Attorney in like Manner as the Writ of Capias. (1) See this act, Evans's Statutes, Part IV, Class 28, Bankrupts. (2) Where a person having privilege of parliament was sued by bill and summons before this act passed, and after the commencement of the action lost his privilege, it was held the process should be continued by distringas, treating him as an M. P., in order to avoid the statute of limitations; Taylor v. Duncombe, 2 Dowl. P. C. 401. PART IV. CLASS VI. PLEADINGS AND OTHER PROCEEDINGS PREVIOUS TO TRIAL. [Under the powers given by the 1 W. 4, c.-70, s. 11. (see ante, p. 419), the judges of the courts of common law at Westminster issued a rule of court of Hilary term, 1 W. 4, directing, that if declarations in assumpsit or debt (for which assumpsit would lie) upon bills of exchange, promissory notes, and the counts usually called the money counts, shall exceed in length, such of the forms set forth in the schedule annexed to such rule as may be applicable to the case, no costs of the excess shall be allowed to the plaintiff if he succeeds in the cause; and such costs of the excess as have been incurred by the defendant shall be taken and allowed to the defendant, and be deducted from the costs allowed to the plaintiff.] [No. I.] 3 & 4 W. IV. c. 42.-An Act for the further Amendment of the Law, and the better Advancement of Justice. [14th August 1833.] WHEREAS it would greatly contribute to the diminishing of expence in suits in the superior courts of common law at Westminster if the pleadings therein were in some respects altered, and the questions to be tried by the jury left less at large than they now are according to the course and practice of pleading in several forms of action; but this cannot be conveniently done otherwise than by rules or orders of the judges of the said courts from time to time to be made, and doubts may arise as to the power of the said judges to make such alterations without the authority of parliament: Be it therefore enacted, &c., That the Judges to have judges of the said superior courts, or any eight or more of them, of power to make whom the chiefs of each of the said courts shall be three, shall and may alterations in by any rule or order to be from time to time by them made, in term or the mode of vacation, at any time within five years from the time when this act shall pleading in the take effect, make such alterations in the mode of pleading in the said superior courts, courts, and in the mode of entering and transcribing pleadings, judg- &c. (1). ments, and other proceedings in actions at law, and such regulations as to the payment of costs, and otherwise for carrying into effect the said alterations, as to them may seem expedient; and all such rules, orders, or regulations shall be laid before both houses of parliament, if parlia ment be then sitting, immediately upon the making of the same, or if parliament be not sitting, then within five days after the next meeting thereof, and no such rule, order, or regulation shall have effect until six weeks after the same shall have been so laid before both houses of parliament; and any rule or order so made shall, from and after such time aforesaid, be binding and obligatory on the said courts, and all other courts of common law, and on all courts of error into which the judg (1) Under the authority of this clause a variety of rules were made by the judges in Hilary term, 4 W. 4, 1834, which came into operation on the first day of the ensuing Easter term, whereby extensive alterations have been introduced into the mode of pleading in the courts of common law at Westminster. |