Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1831-02-12

with an action at law, the parties NAV h. an hundred
III; o'1an' SO u Is 10 practise. There is seldom a
IN Chancery without ten or twenty, and sometimes
even MY or AN tuudr-d defendants IL is totally inn
oae'di "here these parties resde--tiere may b. one
~ e"ch county IN Tue S'a,e-Or in each Safe in the
Onoi-or they may be dispersed through both hemis
pheres: they must all b. made parties by name sni
are al subject to the ur dc,ion OF the court Upou
all VIII reside within the State, process be actually
served belize the cause can be heard. ExpsreuceIu
Chapcery practise shows the TACT that in every cause
wheo The par les spring tom stock and are
then hanched out into families, you will find them
spersed even at home, ibrough many COUNTIES and
yet each OF these, must have process served upon
hm' calling upon bin appear at a given day 10 40.
s"-r the complaint hled--and before the Complainant
can ne head, he must show that his process has been
duly eerv-d Even now, in the district svat.n when
yon have nine Marshals. whoss business il is TO dis.
charse the ministerial offices OF these courts alone
10 whom in the most emote part o. the State Won can
have immediate access by letter addressed To him a,
tue seat OF his court-wih the facilities afforded by
tue practice OF these Marshais of nerchsosing pro.
cess 10 neir respective districts. aud extending aid to
eaco o'her mus, Ia serving their process;he DELAYS
rom ts source a)ce roard causes in court more per.
maps tnsn from any other. Must they not be inluely
increased when your courts are multiplied az intended
anu uelr ouly ofhcers are the ordinary shPJ of the
counties! How will you ge, pro :, s, served in couo.s
wa are temoef fou cant seud hsm TO the High She
.or ne never acts n pers9n-and his residence aud
nus post-offlce 10 unknown You cau'i ssnJ ,hsu,
TO hts deputies, Tor they constantly changing and
their names even uokuowp-sud yet let the parties be
usPstsed as they nay, however nunerou, or remote
nj
am returned to the court wh.uce issued before the
sause can advance one step In this state of thing.
'here eau be but one resoitYou must employ spscis
messenger put the process in his pocket and him
~ Ptoporonate coat, to see the process served upon
eaom party aud to bring IL back in person.
MS cause OF delay, then, must be aggravated. 40
o.ner eh'ei source OF delay is fJuud in the office OF
.he commissioner. This Important funcIiou,ry. even
IN our District System, aud with tn. remuneration
WEIGH The number Of causes referred fcom D.,ric,
Sou,t "oulI Afford is scarce ever found adequate 10
- mi lima a
some rrguia'ions should be made an tyhly re.pon,
ole auxiliary too Chancery CogIt-Hi, duties involve
zee mot responsible trusts, aud tue exercise OF high
judicial powers-dnd yet even uow, with the aIvania-
ses have suggested, except occasionally AZ the seat
OF The Court the great ma oiiy of these officer, are
ignorant un'kiiiul, utterly incompetent men, and the
eAcepuohs and rscommime which follow all the
pro'factthe causes which require them from
year 10 year, until the patience OF the unfortunate
su'or Is worn az ihread-5are his coat. When you
detefiorae the character OF these officers then s
must 10, when you assign to the Court Of escb
county, and let him look TO his fees CT Office for hi,
iaoour, VIII not the entire want OF confidence io
ner reports multiply exceptions and recommitme us
anu respectfully ask whether this source Of DELAY
VIII net be aggravated?
ihe's are two, perhaps the chief sources Of DELAY
incident to the present Courts.-Others might be in
'laneea' and followed out in similar manner and all
would be she wo, not only unm,gatsd by the change
but likely TO be increased ten-fold
But Sir, delays will spring from these ne " Courts.
winch are unknown to the District Sysem-anJ ia
wnich hose now introduced, will be but as dust in the
oal'nce-l mean the utter inability of the Courts to
uy zoe causes The necessary aud inevitable haste
all Hist PTiSt trials, Is utterly inconsistent with IN
calm snd patient, and aborious inv pdisn.n
saois 70 'he wise STANDARDIZATION OF Chancery Law
"e h'ooeu OF Chancery suit is proverbialiy large
L, must always be so, long as the forms rem ain
Firs', comes The Bill aud answer-tLeu the drpn.i,ioo
all In writing, (and from the habits of doing bu,
ID me country, before incompetent Com nissioaers or
more unkliiul Juitices stuffed with all sorts of rr.e
want matier-then, the volumes of docum,n,.ry .gi
uence 10 the shape OF exhibits to tn. bill or fled win
tns hundred answers OF the hundred efeodans-th.n
the accounts stated betw the parties and com,,;s
!" ne commissioners report, sometimes heapiny our.
upon quiFe-then, the records OF oher suits IN de mar,
VI ,"a' W Do "ied' aud nece'saryio its elucida,on-
anu 'nese independent records containing each in it.
sell an independent store of all the materials aor.
named-Aud last comes, the notes and arenm.n,s ri
Cou"sei, Indicating to The Judge The points in the
cause ,he exceptions to the accounts; the evidence
Ia detail and IN gross and the authorities relied ON in
the Dooks-Sir this picture OF Chaucerv cause il not
oyerchitged-l nigh, truly say, &c hoe disco o,nues
aud the exceptions would be Of nmsterial number -
ihese papers are all to be read at least and nanv Of
them to be laboriously examined; the documen,s col
lected-ihe evidence weighed and contras,ed and The
forms oil The dseree shaped out and fitted for the order
10 be made The limits of a nisi pyisi term fo,bi,
this mode OF trial The labour of men eitbs, =, ,h
Bar or Bench IL inadequate to the task There will
not be nne to try the causes. They will hang from
year year, upon the docket waiting their ,,rn ;
course-and when decided, the hasiy examination nm.
on which the decree rests, will destroy all conf enre
in the Judgment OF the Covr and appeals will follow
vi necessary consequence.
So much Sir, for the DELAYS of the Cbsncetv Courts
ana ior The remedy proposed, is il will afec, Them
Next as TO the eSpenc9.-I need not say to those
VINO are to consider this subject, that the DELAY ia adj
justice, Involves the heaviest of all the x
peues-As The delay increases go will cost Increase
with IT. lake justice speedy, and cheapuess follows
as its handmmd. II am right, then, ia the views
have submts of the ef,ct which tho new system
must have, in creating the delays Chancsry tie ex
pences must multiply in precisely the same
exPence in getting your process served and returned:
aud worse than all, expsDce in reeying the mistakes
oil uDskiiu suboTdinaes, and IN correcting the errors
oil Incompetent Csurts.
The expencs Of the judicial establishment will be
lsed for, you must increase the number Judges
aud sven II tbs Tees OF the officers remaiu the same
those officers mus, be multiplied But the only ex-
pence OF litigation, which, as understand the genue-
man from Orange has singled out TO he reduced il The
Tees OF Counsel.-Mr. Spsa kor, does the gentleman
from Ofapge really believe, that by any legislation
here, you regulate restrict, In any manner the
compensation which the Client makes 10 the counsel
for the service he has performed, or in advance Tor
that which he Is TO perform?Does not that geniIem an
know, that there is law in your Siaiute Book
which preserbss the fee that Lawyer shall receive
In any ard ovsry in Court, and that this law is
perfect dead leiterNay that our Court Of highest au
thOily has been obliged virtually oppose the whols
policy OF that law, from the necessity Of the case in
dscidng that Executor Administrator j. well JUS
ted IN employing the able counsel TO manage The
OF his esate and TO pay that counsel extrsor
binary fee for biz services' Bot, ths eeDem IN tell,
ne, that when you distribute tie Courts through the
Country and make their DORIS accessible, 10 those
whom he styles the " Go rntTy Lawyers" the fees ol
counsel will he reduced, because they can afford IN
work cheaper, than gentlemen who live In tie towns
nd is this an argument TO he seriously addressed to
The Intelligence OF this House 10 enl hen and guide
their deiibera'iofsSr in Town or Country know Of
bat standard by which you the fees Of