The Express.
London, England, 1848-06-01 00:00:00

AMENDMENT OF THE LAW.
The Society fur Promoting the Amendment of the
Law held their third annual public meeting, at their rooms
in Regent-strcet, yesterday. Lord Brouebam, the president
of the society, was in the coheir ; and there were present the
Dom of Anryll, Earl Fitswilliam, Earl Radnor, the Earl of
j)evon the Earl of St. Germano, Berl Stradhroke. Earl For-
tune. Ltrd Wharnehffe, Lord Monteagle, Lord Lyndhurst,
Chief Justice Reddie, the 'tient Ron A R. Blake, Mr.
Esrey, kJ P., Mr. licadlam' M P., Mr. Mackinnon, M.P.;
Commissioner* Fine, Fonblanque, end Evans; Mr. M. D.
Hll Q.C. ; Mr. Montagu Chambers Q.C. ; Mr. Roebuck,
Q.C.. ; Mr. Seej. ant D'O)ley, Mr. J. Stewart, Mr.
08111.1.11, Mr. Tiblett, and re veral other members of the bar
end the nt her branches of the 1 gal profession.
The Pluntinesr, after re'errinit to the numerous emend.
merits in the low wttieh had resulted from the common law
COollnisliall in regard to pleading judgments, executions,
arbitrations, and practice generally, and from the real pro-.
petty consmimion in respect to conveyancing, title, entail.,
fines and recoveries, and other matters connected with real
property; slut to the improvements in the law of debtor and
creditor. end the abolition, except 6.r one or two offences, of
the punishment of iL eth, and other amendments in our
criminal laws, end atter adverting to the importance of
carrying out the recommendations of the criminal law com-
missioners in layout of a digest of the whole of the criminal
taus of the otontry, a bill fur which he had already been
enabled to introduce in the (louse of Lords, proceeded to
read the following addl., as of the council to the meeting,
which he said was a report of the proceedings of the society
d to the public at large
Doe rower of the society to to collect and diffuse all Information
which can tend to the elnipliticathm and Inuit Veined of the law ; to
anortraq the manna by which the administration of justice may be
rendered ice.. 4ida cry, less alp DAV!. and in. UnCartila ; to add to
the raw. and security of real reorient% by furilitating Its transfer;
to *id ionsinal right.; and to defend trout pereenal wrong. The
result has been the pt inning of reports on many most imp ortant nub-
yen, of which seeeral have attracted the attention of the leeedature
amt some here become the fitundatien of legislative eracttuent. The
Court et CliAllearY, innt`ea•sAle to the poor, vexatious to the rich,
dilatory anti espensive to all, with a theory almost peeing
Is Its monks, with a practice alinost unequalled In its iroperkos
lions, so: e. nom st, es of course, the first to melee their attention.
But there Si another and a higher it Ronal welt entith dto divan"
peere- roe with the Conn of Chancery as an object of law ta.forin -
the Mane art of Parliament -not ie its political, but in its ley/Wane,
capacity not In any question of the purity of its intentions, but k
respect et lit incapacity to convey. three intentions in reasinablelswe
gusge. It would be a mortifying though an instructive task, to
ascertain how much of each volume of the statutes at large is occupied
in correcting the errors, uncertainties, insutbeienciee, imeertinencea,
and of or imperfections of its predeeeneri Ain the aerie+. To thin the
society has directed It.. epe. ial attention : and it la not without
hope that some of its suggestions are on the eve of
adoption. On the subject or the conveyance of real 'sweetly,
the committee have trade Kemal reports, arid are still occupied
in its blether examination. They may n.fer to the act for rendering
assignments of terms of years unitccesury, an ao instance where the
legislature has acted on the reports ol the committee with great hene-
et to the public. For more than fifteen year., there hoe seureely
been a session in which an *et him not palmed on the law of debtor and
creditor, with its coneequences of huiLniptcy and insolvency ; and yet
pennies melt affected by the evils to wow it trade is expand, and man
prectiraty conversant with the law, declare that the law yet retrains
uncertain anti inealthient. The jurisdiction and procedure of the
ecclesiastical Ontario, the law of wills absurdly subjected (even
under the same instrument) to two jutislictlons (if the property
left be both real and personal) the important questions re-
biting to marriage and the law of divorce not exclusively applicable
to the rich, are subieem calling for amendment The administration
of the criminal law ; more speedy, vet more deltionite let d; more
certain and more eflicarious puma/meld; COntillitad modifications
of our once sanguinary eyntern ; rein. iu.itory temishinente of secon-
dary se,erity; a court of rerisioa or appeal ; :ire among our exigen-
cies. On the ista*ct of legal edu...tion, the society .icipiteeee in the
general opinion that the great law cullers, the societies of Lincoln's-
inn, the Middle sad Inner Temple, anti Graywinn, have not ade-
quately f trilled the purposes of ther institution : they have been
Rtel.: 01 resort, anti nOtnnit; mum Unit( lately, no poet of their
though consisting of sccumulattous and oontributions rained
bye opt coos of taxation upon the members of the profession, were ap-
plied too public purpose s. The eociety would be tenured to risk for
some contrullinesenate which should asstuilate the 1. gni to the other
universities. The Council hope* that in thus showing some shown
bow the extent of the obits:et of their institution ;hey have ate • ehown
bow deeply and how extensively the public are into In their sue.
ex s. Landed proprietors, magiistrates, clergymen, merchantit, leirikens,
trader., have each their several questions of law—have each *see-
thing to ask or something to complain of. The toutety ewers them a
tallying point for communication. a council for lannee, AI organ for
suggeetion ; and to return they Ask fur csoperationoiseistance; and
support.
Re congratulated the society upon its proem. and the
advance of the principles of law return during the last twelve
months, both in parliament and out of doors, and upon
the full attendance that day. That hi. noble friend, the Duke
of Richmond, was not present was only because he wee pre-
siding over the meeting of another most important societ)tbe Society for Reforming Criminals and preventing the Re-
petition of Offences, anti for carrying out thoar principles
which had been so successful in Belgium and some parts of

France.
The Earl of RADNOR tht.n moved a resolution to the et
feet that the meeting concurred in the vtewe expres.ed in the
address, and considered that the eociety was entitled to the
continued and increased contitlehte and support of the

public.
The Earl of DEVON. in seconding the motion, spoke of
tke fainted', the carefulness, and the abil.ty with which
every suggestion made to the council for the amendment of
the law was diseessed, and added that it was important the
public should know that this society gave an opportunity to
every man, of whatever profession or calling, who had arrived
at the conclusion that the law as it affected him in his busi-
ness or his acts required amendment, of making his vi ws
known with the certainty that they would receive a lull,
calm, and impartial consideration. (Cheers.)
The resolution was carried.
The Earl of STKADBROKE proposed the nest resolution—
That the present law relating to the tempter of real property wan
defective ape ill adapted to the wants of society; and that s camper
and mute ready mode of conveying land was demanded both in Eng-
land and Ireland.
He spike from experience both as a seller and purchaser of
land in England and Ireland, when he said that the present
law wan mos, defective, a d that any alteration that would
facilitate and diminish the expense of the transfer of real pro-
perty would he a great benefit to society. He knew a case in
which three years were occupied in completing a sale of pro-
perty which, but for the imp dements the law interposed,
might have been completed in three month..
Mr. J. L.TEWAILT (barrister), in seconding the rev lution,
also spoke of the many defects of the law, and his expectation
of amendment, as arising from the recommendations of the
real property commis-ioners, and
Mr. A. BLAKE said he had seen, with great pleasu'e,
a bill before parliament for facilitating the transfer of real
estates in Irelsnd—( hear, hear)—a bet which, though ca-
pable of sense amendments, contained some important princi-
ples. That measure he found gave a new root of title, viz.,
that when a sale was made the cony. yance of the master
should be good i aga_nst all opposers. But, AS they gave
strength to that rule they must take care that it did not ope-
rate unjustly, and must take precautions against improper
titles being imposed en the master. He bore testimony to
the good which had been effected by this society, and added
that if it should be successful I. its object of cleating out the
Court of Chancery, it would effect even more good than
wield maulr from the cleaning out of all the sewers.
The resolution was then agreed to.
Mr. klesineee, M.P., then moved—
That the expense and delay arising front the present state of chan-
cery procedure, opecially in the master's Ake, were no great as to
require LI speedy remedy in order to protect the Court of Chancery
from falling into public disrespect.
Tke pleadings and practice of the Chancery courts were, in
many rupee's, bad, and the practice of taking evidence by
written interrogations and written answer. was most objec-
tionable He thought the bill as to joint stock partnerships
of the present session was a step in the right direction, and
be hoped the principle of it would be extended still further.
The resolution having been agreed to,
Mr. W. HAWES moved:
That, tioniiidcring the prrent unarttled and conflicting gate of the
law of debtor and creditor, and the great importance of maintaining
credit in tine country, Mi. meeting Is of °pint. that into branch at
the law requires a careful investigation tad reseston.
As the law now stood no protection was given to the creditor
who gave credit on the faith of the debtor's promises, because
the onus of proof of fraud was thrown upon him. The debtor
whn applied to the Bankrupt or Insolvent Court to be re-
lieved from his liabilities should be bound to show that he
had not contracted those liabilities in fraud. Ile complained
that this society, which had interfered to save expenses to
the rich in the transfer of estates, had not interfered to pro-
tect the small trader by giving him a sure and speedy remedy
against his debtor. The public at large were f.,r more inte-
rested in a good law of debtor and creditor than in r forms
in the Court of Chancery. The lees by bankruptcy and in-
solvency in this country—nr rather, the total amount of tail-
urea—i acceded 60,000,0001. a year ; and if they were to go
on allowing, and io fact encouraging, men (f .r such was the
operation of our bankrupt and insolvent laws) to repudiate
their debts, they must n ht be surprised it the principle ex-
tended
more generally, and a composition of the national debt
should not be thought impossible. (Hear, bear.) At
presort it was only the more honest of those who failed
who reserten to the Bankruptcy Court. The majority effected
their object by miens of a composition which they forced
their creditors to accept by the threat of taking advantage of
the bankrupt laws. This was especially the cue, lie was
informed, in the drapery trade. He believed much of the
comm, rcial distress we had experienced wan owing to the
cackle amen with which debt was incurred in the absence
of any punishment for that offence.
Mr. GAVNEN seconded the resolution, concurring in the
opinion that had there been a law to punish fraudulent and
reckless debtors, the commercial difficulties which, on various
occasions, had been experienced during the last quarter of a
century, might in a great measure have been avoided.
The PREsIDENT assured Mr. Hawes that he did not differ
hem him in principle on this subject. It was on the prin-
ciple that the debtor, not having paid his debt, was prima
facie in the wrong, that he had opposed the present Lord
Chancellor's bill, which imposed the onus of proof on the
creditor. The present law of debtor inn creditor undoubt-
edly required the consideration of parliament.
Mr Commissioner FAKE.—If the subject was to come
before parliament, he would ark parliament to take into its
consideration at the same time that principle of law by which
the creditor who had obtained judgment against the debtor
was to he preferred over the others--for the consequence of
that principle was, that whichever creditor the debtor pre-
ferred, though the debt were altogether fictitious, grasped
all the property. So far as his experience went he could say
that great practical evil arose from that particular rule of
law, which raid that he who was urgent and obtained judg-
ment should have the property to the exclusion of the others,
for the man who did so, and seized, was often the greatest
knave.—The resolution was carried.
Mr. Itotirecx, Q.C., then moved that in order to carry
(solo m [linty and complete the necessary amendments in
the law, it is essential to establish a mullet r et justice, or a
department in the state which shall be devoted to this duty.
At pre,ent there was no department upon which the respon-
sibility of this duty fell ; and what was meant by the resolu-
tion was, that all that was directly or collaterally connected
with the administration of the law should be placed in the
hands of on. responsible officer, whose duty should be to
bet hie mind and the minds of those wider him to the reform of
the law and the administration of justice. He knew that
there were objections to the title "Minister of Justice,* as