A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London CourtsLeaming, Thomas
History
A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London Courts
Leaming, Thomas
Courts -- Great Britain; Lawyers -- Great Britain
The English Courts scrupulously guard against the trial of cases in
the newspapers rather than in court. In the recent trial of Dr.
Crippen for murder, the proprietor of a provincial newspaper which,
in printing the news of the arrest, had speculated upon the
probability of Crippen's guilt, was summoned before the court after
the trial had been concluded and was fined £100 on the ground that
the article was calculated to interfere with the cause of justice. A
prominent London daily newspaper was likewise fined £200 for
relating that Crippen had confessed his guilt, while a London
evening paper was fined a like sum because, during the course of the
trial, it published a statement not contained in the evidence.
Many of the resolutions of the General Council of the Bar deal with
the rights and privileges of the profession. One is thus reminded
that the Inns of Court, which came into existence with the ancient
London Trades Guilds, were founded originally for a like
purpose--the protection of a particular occupation. During the
established vacations many junior barristers take only a few days'
holiday and particularly on the Chancery side, quite a number of
them and also a few K. C.'s are at work in their chambers or attend
the weekly sittings of the Vacation Court during the greater part of
the Long Vacation. It appears, however, that some young devil once
attempted to obtain a ruling that another devil should not devil in
vacation, but the Council declined to sustain his contention as
follows: "_Devilling in Vacation_: There is no 'Rule of the
Profession' against it." An. St. 1900-1909, p. 8.
A few years ago, there was a newspaper agitation against the Long
Vacation which had always extended from August 12th to the first
Monday of November. The result of the discussion was to shorten it,
by making it begin--as it now does--on August 1st and end on the
12th of October. There are also liberal vacations at Christmas,
Easter and Whitsuntide.
One resolution of the Council illustrates the fact, already referred
to, that barristers are not nearly so intimately identified with
litigation conducted by them as are American lawyers and that their
cases are more or less like abstract propositions placed in their
hands to be advocated. The resolution is as follows:
"_Briefs, Obligation to Accept_: The general rule is that a
barrister is bound to accept any brief, in the courts in
which he professes to practice, at a proper professional
fee. Special circumstances may justify his refusal to
accept a particular brief. Any complaint as to the
propriety of such refusal, if brought to the attention of
the Council and by them considered reasonable, would be
transmitted by them to the Benchers of the Inn of which the
barrister is a member." An. St. 1903-1904, p. 15.
Conversely; a barrister can not offer inducements for briefs, as was
held in the following:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account