were wantonly and vexatiously raised. Expense of witnesses to prove the circumstances of a plea not in issue, if such circumstances have a bearing on other parts of the case in issue, may be allowed, and a reasonable amount of expense incurred in investigating and acquiring information as to the circumstances of the case will be considered (Allen v. Allen and D'Arcy, 3 Law Times Rep., N.S., 480).

PARENT AND CHILD.-Father's right to custody-Child under sixteen-Habeas Corpus.-A father, if there be no disqualifying cause, has a right to the custody of a female child up to the age of sixteen, although she be unwilling to live under his care and control (Re Barford, 3 Law Times Rep., N.S., 467).

ATTORNEYS' NEW ACT.

THE 23 AND 24 VIC. c. 127.

THE above act is one of very great importance, and as some of its provisions affect, in a special manner, a class of persons of whom this publication is the organ, and the others will form the subject of questions at the future examinations, it is proposed to notice it in greater detail than will be done in the case of other statutes.

The Act purports to be for "Amending the Laws relating to Attorneys, Solicitors, Proctors, and Certificated Conveyancers," and is (s. 36) to be construed together with the 6 and 7 Vic. c. 73, the principal Attorneys' Act, sometimes called the Act of 1843. It came into operation on the 28th day of August last, which must be borne in mind where the enactments mention, as they sometimes do, "hereafter."

ARTICLED CLERKS.

The provisions relative to articled clerks may be divided into— 1. Those shortening the time of service ordinarily required; 2. Those relating to the examinations before admission. There are two shortened periods of service, viz., 1. Three years, 2. Four years. These we now proceed to notice.

THREE YEARS' SERVICE UNDER ARTICLES.

Secs. 2 to 4 provide that any person who has taken a degree at any of the Universities of Great Britain and Ireland, or who has been called to the degree of Utter Barrister in England, and has ceased to be a barrister, or who has been admitted as a Writer to the Signet, or as a Solicitor in the Supreme Courts of Scotland, or as a Procurator before any of the Sheriffs' Courts of Scotland, or

who has been a bona fide clerk to an attorney, solicitor, or proctor, for ten years, may be admitted after three years' service under articles.

The most important of the above provisions are those relating to 1, graduates, 2, ordinary clerks of ten years' standing, or, as we propose to style them, the decennial clerks.

GRADUATES.

The 2nd sec. of the Act is that which relates to graduates; it repeals the 7th sec. of the 6 and 7 Vic. c. 73, by which graduates of the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Dublin, Durham, or London, were entitled to be admitted as attorneys after a service of three years, provided-1. That they took the degree within a limited time of matriculation; and 2. They entered their clerkship within four years from taking the degree. In many instances these limitations operated harshly, and endeavours were made to get them dispensed with by the courts, but in vain. The new Act has, however, repealed both the above limitations, and the privilege of graduateship is extended to the graduates of the Queen's University in Ireland and the Universities of Scotland; thus conferring a boon on Irish and Scotch university scholars. It is to be remarked that graduates are exempted from the examination in general knowledge, which, in the case of other clerks, except those who have passed a middle class examination, the judges are empowered, as will be presently seen, to direct. The new provision applies to clerks already articled for five years, which may be important to some of our subscribers. It also permits one year of the three to be passed with the London agent, but this does not extend to Counsels' Chambers. The following is the 2nd sec. in extenso :

"Sec. II. Persons having taken degrees at certain universities may be admitted after three years' service.-Sec. 7 of the first herein beforementioned Act (6 and 7 Vic. c. 73), shall be repealed, and any person having taken the degree of Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Laws in the University of Oxford, Cambridge, Dublin, Durham, or London, or in the Queen's University in Ireland, or the degree of Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Bachelor of Laws, or Doctor of Laws, in any of the universities of Scotland, none of such degrees being honorary degrees, and who at any time after having taken such degree, and either before or after the passing of this act, has been bound by and has duly served under articles of clerkship, to a practising attorney or solicitor for the term of three years, and has been examined and sworn in manner directed by the first hereinbefore-mentioned act and by this act, may be admitted, and enrolled as an attorney or solicitor, and service for any part of the said term, not exceeding one year, with the London agent of such attorney or solicitor in the business, practice, or employment of an attorney or

solicitor, either by virtue of any stipulation in such articles, or with the permission of such attorney or solicitor, shall be and be deemed to have been good service under such articles for such part of the said term; and where any person has before the passing of this act, and at any time after having taken such degree, been bound as aforesaid for five years, he may, after having duly served three years of such term in such manner as would have been required if he had been bound for three years only, and having been examined and sworn as aforesaid, and with the consent in writing (endorsed on his articles of clerkship) of the attorney or solicitor to whom he may be bound, to the immediate determination of his articles of clerkship, be admitted and enrolled as an attorney or solicitor; and where such consent is given as aforesaid, and acted upon under this provision by the person hereby made eligible to be admitted and enrolled as aforesaid, the articles of clerkship shall be deemed to have determined as if they had determined by effluxion of time.

DECENNIAL CLERKS.

The 4th sec. of the act enables an attorney's clerk, who has been bona fide engaged for ten years in the business usually trans. acted by attorneys, to be examined and admitted after having been articled for three years only. This provision is so far retrospective that where articles for five years were entered into before the passing of the act, the examination and admission may take place at the end of three years, provided the attorney gives his consent in writing on the articles. The following is the 4th sec. relative to decennial clerks, set forth verbatim, on account of its importance ::

"Sec. IV. Persons having been bonâ fide clerks to attorneys, solicitors, or proctors for ten years, may be admitted after three years' service. Any person who, either before or after the passing of this act, shall for the term of ten years have been a bona fide clerk to an attorney, solicitor, or proctor, or attorneys, solicitors, or proctors, and during that term shall have been bona fide engaged in the transaction and performance, under the direction and superintendence of such attorney, solicitor, or proctor, or attorneys, solicitors, or proctors, of such matters of business as are usually transacted and performed by attorneys, solicitors, and proctors, and who shall produce to the examiners satisfactory evidence that he has faithfully, honestly, and diligently served as such clerk, and who after the expiration of the said term of ten years has been bound by and has duly served under articles of clerkship to a practising attorney, solicitor, or proctor, for the term of three years, and has been examined and sworn in manner directed by the first herein before-mentioned act and by this act, may be admitted and enrolled as an attorney and solicitor or proctor, and service for any part of the said term not exceeding one year with the London agent of such attorney or

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solicitor or proctor in the proper business, practice, or employment of an attorney, solicitor, or proctor, either by virtue of any stipulation in such articles, or with the permission of such attorney, solicitor, or proctor, shall be and be deemed to have been good service under such articles for such part of the said term; and where any such person has, before the passing of this act, been bound for five years, he may, after having duly served three years of such term in such manner as would have been required if he had been bound for three years only, and having been examined and sworn as aforesaid, and with the consent in writing (endorsed on his articles of clerkship) of the attorney, solicitor, or proctor to whom he may be bound, to the immediate determination of his articles of clerkship, be admitted and enrolled as an attorney and solicitor; and where such consent is given, as aforesaid, and acted upon under this provision by the person hereby made eligible to be admitted and enrolled as aforesaid, the articles of clerkship shall be deemed to have determined as if they had determined by effluxion of time."

It is impossible to over-estimate the importance of the above provision; but there seems little ground for the suggestion put forth by some, that it will enable mere copying clerks to be admitted on a three years' service under articles; they certainly are not persons "bona fide engaged in the transaction and performance of such matters of business as are usually transacted and performed by attorneys," &c. Another suggestion, that the provision will not include any portion of a service by a clerk whilst under age, does not appear to be so well founded; for there is no reason why a person under 21 should be therefore considered as not engaged in the performance of such matters of business as are usually transacted by attorneys. It is true, no one can be admitted an attorney who is under 21; but this does not furnish any ground for saying that he is not within the terms of the fourth section. It would, perhaps, be different if the service of an articled clerk under 21 would not reckon. There will, no doubt, before long be many important points raised on the proper construction to be put upon the above section. We shall take care to notice them. If there should be any cases not reported, we shall be glad to receive the particulars thereof, so that they may be made available for the benefit of others.

FOUR YEARS' SERVICE.

It is provided by sec. 5 of the act that the judges may make regulations for the admission of persons who have passed any examination established in any of the universities, and after four years' service under articles subsequently entered into. The university examinations are those usually termed the "middle class examinations." The provisions of the act do not apply to persons previously

articled for the full term of five years, so that the effect of passing, during articles, any such examination will not be to shorten the period for which the service must take place, which appears to be a defect. The clerks articled for four years after a university examination will be exempt from the examination in general knowledge hereafter mentioned.

The following are the provisions of the above 5th sec. :—

"Sec. V. Judges may make regulations for persons who have passed certain examinations before articles to be admitted after four years' service.-The Lords Chief Justices of the Courts of Queen's Bench and Common Pleas, and the Lord Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer, jointly with the Master of the Rolls, may, if they think fit, from time to time, by regulations to be made by them, direct that any person having successfully passed any examination now or hereafter to be established in any of the universities herein beforementioned, and to be specified in such regulations, may be admitted and enrolled as an attorney or solicitor, after having been subsequently bound by, and having duly served under, articles of clerkship to a practising attorney or solicitor for the term of four years, and been examined and sworn as aforesaid; and the said judges may from time to time revoke or alter such regulations as they think fit, but not so as to allow a less term of service than four years.

The judges have not yet issued any regulations; but some are at present under consideration, and when issued they will be published in these pages.

FOUR YEARS' CLERKS MAY SERVE ONE YEAR WITH A BARRISTER OR

LONDON AGENT.

By sec. 6 of the 6 & 7 Vic. c. 78, persons bound for five years may serve one year with a barrister, or special pleader, and one year with the London agent of the attorney to whom articled. By sec. 6 of the new act this provision is extended to such persons as are above mentioned to be entitled to be articled for four years. The enactment is as follows:

'Sec. VI. Sec. 6 of 6 & 7 Vic. c. 73, extended to persons articled for four years only.-Section 6 of the first hereinbefore-mentioned act [6 & 7 Vic., c. 73] shall apply as well to any person bound as therein mentioned as a clerk to a practising attorney or solicitor for the term of four years only, where under the said regulations that term is sufficient as to any person so bound for the term of five years, and shall be read and construed accordingly.

EXAMINATIONS IN GENERAL KNOWLEDGE, AND PROGRESS OF LEGAL STUDIES DURING THE CONTINUANCE OF ARTICLES, ETC.

It has been already stated that the late act contains important and novel provisions as to the examinations, but these do not affect