A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London Courts — John Shaqi
A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London CourtsLeaming, Thomas
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A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London Courts
Leaming, Thomas
Courts -- Great Britain; Lawyers -- Great Britain
Special juries, on the other hand, which may be claimed as a right
by either party and whose services are paid for by the litigants
rather than by the Government, receive one guinea a day and the
members must occupy premises renting for not less than £50 a year,
or a farm worth £300 yearly, or they may be bankers, merchants, or
persons upon whom minor titles have been bestowed. The employment of
special juries is increasing in frequency at the expense of ordinary
juries and it seems that the facility to obtain them is also cutting
down the number of trials which the law permits to be conducted by
the judges without any jury at all, provided the parties so agree.
The Chancery Division, as stated, is the tribunal for equity trials
where juries are rarely employed, but the judge determines both the
law and the facts. Into this court therefore comes all the equity
litigation of England, although, for very limited sums, there is a
concurrent jurisdiction in the County Courts. The separation which
exists between practice in this court, and the barristers who
practice therein, as compared with the common law courts, has
already been described at length. The judges in the equity courts
never wear gowns containing any colors except black.
The Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division of the High Court of
Justice is, like the Chancery Division, a court of equity, as
distinguished from a court of law, in which the trials are conducted
by a judge without a jury. Here are considered all matters
concerning decedent's estates, but the Chancery Division has to do
with the construction of wills and the distribution of property.
Divorces occupy much time of this Court and furnish sensational
material for English newspapers. They form an exception to the
general rule in the Probate, Divorce and Admiralty division in the
presence of a jury and in the submission of the facts to them.
The Admiralty Court is of course confined to maritime matters and
the room is adorned by a gilt anchor fixed upon a shield hung upon
the wall behind the presiding judge, who is assisted in the
technical matters by two Trinity Masters--retired sea captains.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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