The Express.
London, England, 1848-01-07 00:00:00

THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE BAR.

The following is the petition referred to in our
leading columns :
The humble petition of George Gun Hay, of No. 44, Lin-
coln'sinn-fields, in the county of Middlesex, attorney-at-law,
showeth—That your petitioner is the attorney retained by
Senor Don Tomas Rodriguez 13t1r00, by Senor Don Do-
mingo Fernandez Martinez, and by Senor Don Angel
Jimenez, respectively, merchants of Havana, in the island
of Cuba, in three several actions brought by these parties re-
spectively, and now pending in her Majesty's Court of Be
chequer of Pleas, at Westminster, against the Hon. Captain
Joseph Denraan, of her Majes's navy; and to one of
which actions, viz., that of "Buren v. Denman," the
attention of your honourable house has been very re
cently directed. That these actions were commenced on the
3d day of August, 1842, and in the month of November,
1842, your petitioner retained the services of Mr., now Sir
Fitzroy Kelly, knight, as counsel for the sold plaintiffs in
these three severalactions; and that front the period afore-
said up to the month of May last (with th 3 exception of the
short interval during which Sir Fitzroy Kelly he:d the office
of her Majesty's Solicitor-General), your petitioner acted
under the advice: of Sir Fitzroy Kelly. as such counsel in all
the stages of these actions at law. That by means of hav-
ing advised your petitioner on the affairs of his said
clients the said Sir Fitzroy, Kelly has become most
intimately acquainted with the case of your petitioner's
client', Huron, Martinez, and Jimenez. That in the month
of October last it was intimated to your petition, r that Sir
Fitzroy Kelly, although s.ill holding the retainers of your
petitioner on behalf of his clients, could no longer act as
their mussel, in consequence of the Attorney-General hay-
ing required his services as counsel for the said defendant,
Captain Denman. That your petitioner, immediately on his
receiving this intimation, wrote to the said Sir Fitzroy Kelly,
reminding him of his having been for so long a period retained
by your petitioner as counsel for his clients, and
of him having so repeatedly advised on their case ; but
he received back for answer from the said Sir
Fitzroy Kelly, that he had " no choice in the matter to
which your petitioner's letter referred ; that the crown had
required his services, and that he was hound by his oath of
office to obey." That your petitioner then addressed a letter
to the Solicitor to the Admiralty, who is and has been from
the commencement of these actions conducting the defence
of Captain Denman, and from him he received for reply,
that, "having received the directions of the Attorney-
General to retain Sir Fitzroy Kelly, he had not any discre-
tion upon the subject ;" that he had " explained to the At-
torney-General that Sir Fitzroy Kelly was the leading
counsel and adviser of the plaintiffs ; and that, on the hear-
ing of the demurrer (in the course of the pleadings), Sir
Fitzroy Kelly actually appeared in court and argued for
them." That your petitioner, impressed with the great im-
portance it was to his clients that Sit Fitzroy Kelly should
continue their counsel, and impressed also with a sense of
the great hardships that his clients were made to sustain
by being deprived of their leading advocate, memorial.
iced the Lords of the Admiralty, who are defending
these actions, through their solic'tor ; but their lordships
have refused to forego the cervices of Sir Fitzroy Kelly.
That your petitioner respectfully begs to ca/1 the attention
of your honourable house to the tact that neither the Crown
nor the department of the Admiralty are parties to these
actions ; and that the actions (as appears by the titles of
them) were instituted, and have been always conducted,
against Captain Denman individually ; and your petitioner
therefore humbly submits to your honourable house that the
interference of the Lords of the Admiralty is gratuitous and
uncalled for. That your petitioner respectfully begs to sub-
mit to the consideration of your honourable house the hard-
ship and injuotice which his clients are made to suffer by
the conduct of the Lords of the Admiralty and of the chief
law officer of the crown, and which not only strikes at the
root of the independence of the bar, but is calculated to
destroy all professional confidence, while it is a Referent act
of tyranny inflicted on your petitioner's clients. Your peti-
tioner therefore humbly solicits the notice of your honourable
house to the grievance which he has thus respectfully
brought to your attention ; and he most respectfully ven-
tures to hope that he shall not make this appeal in vain, but
that your honourable house will exert its powerful interfer-
ence to protect your petitioner's clients against so gross a
lease of oppression and injustice. And your petitioner will
ever pray, &e. GEORGE Gun Hay.