The Sun.
London, England, 1837-03-21 00:00:00

APPEAL.—BROOKE V. CHAMPERNOWNE AND OTHERS.
Mr. WAKEFIELD terminated his argument for the re-
spondents, and Mr. PEMBERTON then replied.
The LORD CHANCELLOR said that the question involved
in this case was one of nicety and difficulty, and he should
wish for time to consider it.

Lord BROUGHAM concurred as to the necessity of con-
sidering the case, and expressed his regret that Lord Lynd-
hurst was prevented by the illness of a part of his family
from assisting their Lordships.—The judgment was post-
poned.

VICE-CHANCELLOR'S COURT, MARCH 20.
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL V. WILSON.

This was an information by the Attorney-General at the
relation of the Corporation of Leeds, and a bill by the
Corporation praying to have it declared that two sums of
6,5001. stock, and 5001., secured on the Leeds and Wake-
field tolls, which the members of the Corporation, at the
date of the Municipal Reform Act, had transferred to the
defendants, were Corporate property. The Corporation,
under its Charter, had a power of imposing various fines
and amercements, which were the principal source of the
Corporate property. In 1835 that property consisted only
of two sums of 6,5001. stock, and 500/., secured on the
Leeds and Wakefield tolls. On the 22d of May in that
year notice was given in the House of Commons of the
intention of Government to introduce the Municipal
Reform Act. On the 30th of May the Corporation
of Leeds met, and passed a resolution that these sums
should be absolutely transferred and aliened to the de-
fendants, Messrs. Wilson, Beckett, and Blayds, " so
as thereby to vest the same in those gentlemen, and
divest the Corporation of all power and controul over
the same ;" and a deed poll of the same date under the Cor-
poration seal, was prepared for that purpose by the town-
clerks, Messrs. Nicholson and Barr. On the Ist of June,
the town clerks wrote to the defendants, informing them
that the money was at their disposal. The defendants did
not allege this was intended as a gift to themselves, but
they stated their belief that the Corporation had in May
determined to appropriate the money for the endowment of
public charities and churches in Leeds, and had merely se-
lected the defendants as individuals to whom the money
should be transferred for that purpose. Nothing further
was done till the 4th of July, when a memorial was ad-
dressed to the defendants, signed by aiumerous members of
the Corporation, by which the parties signing requested the
defendants to be pleased to appropriate the. funds trans-
ferred to them by the Corporation to the following pur-
poses at such times as they might think proper. To the
Recorder, as a gratuity for his past services, 525/. money ;
to the Deputy-Recorder, 1051. money ; to the Infirmary,
750/. Three per Cents. ; to the House of Recovery, 5001.,
to the Public Dispensary, 250/. ; towards the subscription
for the erection and endowment of a new church at the west
end of the town, 1,0001. ; to improve the stipends of the
officiating Clergymen at St. Mary's and Christ Church,
one thousand pounds each. Drafts of deeds were after-
wards prepared by the town clerks to carry these in-
tentions into effect. The subscription for the church
failed, and in lieu of the intended donation for that
purpose was substituted a gift of 500/. for erecting a gallery
in St. Mark's Church. On the 24th of November, a deed
was prepared between the defendants and the Corporation,
which was executed by the defendants, but not by the Cor-
poration, whereby it was declared the defendants were at
once to pay the 5251. and 105/. to the Recorder and De-
puty-Recorder ; and then it declared the trusts of the MOL,
500/., and 250/., for the Infirmary, the House of Recovery,
and dispensary ; and also the trusts of the two sums of
1,0001. and the sum of 500/. for the churches of St. Mary's,
Quarry-bill, Christ's Church, Meadow-lane, and for a
gallery in St. Mark's Church, at Woodhouse. And as to
the residue of the trust funds, upon trust to discharge the
debts of the Corporation directed by the committee to be
paid, and then for the Corporation, their successors, and
assigns, for ever. On the same day another indenture was
executed, but not by the Corporation, transferring the
2,5001. for the churches to other trustees. Most of the
funds were transferred,by the defendants, but they admitted
there still remained in their hands the three sums of 7501.,
5001., and 2501. stock, and the bond of 5001., which had never
been specifically appropriated. And there was also a sum
of 5571. cash unappropriated, out of which the defendants
had paid, before they put in their answer, 5001. to their
solicitors, on account of their bill of costs in the cause.
Mr. JACOB was heard on Saturday last in support of a
motion that the defendant should pay into Court the
whole cash balance of 5571, and should be restrained from
parting with the bond or stock, and for the production
of documents.
Mr. KNIGHT opposed the motion. The Legislature
interfered with the absolute control of corporations to a
certain extent, and in a certain way, and no further ; and
if it meant to raise inferential and constructive trusts, it
would have said so.
The VICE-CHANCELLOR said there had been, he recol-
lected, a case before Lord Brougham and himself, under
the Bankrupt Act, involving the question how far—when
an Act of Parliament had prevented the doing of a thing,
and had prescribed a new mode of inquiring into it—how
far the general right of inquiry into its validity was affected.
Mr. KNIGHT recollected the case, which was reported in
" Deacon and Chitty." That was a question Ithether the
jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery was taken away with-
out express words ; but here the distinction was, the Court
would be making a new law, and not exercising an old ju-
risdiction. The present Lord Chancellor, in the Liverpool
case, expressly guarded himself against giving any opinion
upon the 97th section. In that case, and in the Norwich
case, the corporations succeeded. Every declaration was in
favour of the rights of corporations, and was the Court
now, for the first time, upon motioli, to decide against
them ? This was a fishing motion. The parties only wanted
a hint whether the speculation would turn up a trump.
His HONOUR delivered judgment. As to the .57/.,
nothing was more plain than that the defendants held that
sum as trustees for the Corporation ; and the same obser-
vation appied to the 557/. on the Bth of September ; and
the only fact stated on the face of the answer to alter the
quality of that was the last payment,_ which appeared in
the schedule on the 9th of September of 500/. to the soli-
citors on account of their costs in the cause, to which was
subjoined a note in the schedule, that all the payments
there except the last were made in pursuance of the trust
deeds and the resolutions of the Corporation. It appeared
therefore, that the payment of the 9th of September had no
sanction whatever. He would treat that money, therefore,
as if it were in the hands of the defendants. With respect
to the three sums of stock, the defendants had actually de-
clared that they held them in trust for the charities. It
would be rather a strong thing to interfere in the absence
of these parties ; he should make no order as to that. The
Wakefield mortgage fell under the same description as the
5001. As to the inspection of documents, that might take
place at Leeds.