The republic., 1851-01-02
Legal Reform.

a radical change in the practice OF the law has
taken place in the State of New York since
the adopIiun of the new constitution IN lSlI.
In pursuance of an article in that constitution,
complete codes. both Of civil and criminal pro
cedure, have been prepared. which are intended
To cover the whole ground of remedial law and
TO dispense with all previous statute and COM
mon law in that department Oi these codes
only the one providing for civil procedure has
ms yet been adopted by the Legslature-and
that we believe not in It's complete form; the
other part of the work remains TO be acted
upon. and will come before the Legislature at
lis approaching session We take ii for granted
that the reform which has been begun will be
carried out. and that the new system, as
whole. will soon 90 into operation and be fairly
tested.
The most important of the changes intro
duced are the abolition of the old forms of ac-
ton and pleading, and the establishment OF a
uniform system of procedure in all cases, both
of legal and equitable cognizance-thus, In fact,
breaking down the distinction between law and
equity. AS subsidiary to these ends, numerous
other established rules and technical distlnc-
tons are done away with, which II is not ne
cessary for our present purpose, to notice more
particularly That portion of the code which
has received the sanction OF the Legislature,
has now been in operation some two years
Besides the disadvantage of going into effect in
an unfinished state, entering the field before
the rubbish of the old system had been entirely
cleared away-t has labored under the addi-
ha,n, adj IN,
many cases, by Judges and lawyers preJudlced
against it, and disposed to throw obstacles III
the way OF its success. Men who had been
practising half their lives under the old sys-
tem who had become familiar with It's antigua
ted forms and technicatles, and had spent days
and months in burrowIng into and treasurng up
it's endless distinctions, could not easily endure
that all this precious &arning should be
dered of no account They had trodden So long
ia the old road that they had come to love even
lis zigzag wlndings and useless by paths, and
had no desire to turn aside from II in search Of
ii shorter way. Long association had led them
to imagine that justice was somehow lnsepa-
fably connected with particular words and
phrases and that some mysterious virtue was
wrapped up in the verlest jargon of the law.
Ii is not surprising, therefore, that the new
code has not always been administered in
friendly spirit; nor is 1t to be wondered at that
some difference of opinion still exists among
members of the legal profession in regard to It's
merits Yet, making due allowance for the
preudices above referred TO, the weight of tes-
timony shows that the practical operation o.
the system, under all its disadvantages, has
been, in high degree, satisfactory Several
eminent Judges and members of the bar, who
were at first strongly opposed to it, now give
evidence in its favor; and declare their opinion
that the experiment OF blending the two sys-
TENS Of law and equity, the greatest novelty
which it introduced, has been entirely sue
cessful
The working Of this great legal reform in
the State of New York has, OF course, been
watched with much interest in all parts of the
Union and some other States, we believe,
have already proited by her example Recent
lv the subject has attracted much attention in
England. At late meeting Of the Law
Amendment Society,"" in London, Mr.. ID. ID.
FIELD one of the commissioners by whom the
New York code was prepared, and through
whose unweared exertlons the reform was eff
fected was called upon To address the meeting
in explanation of its provisions. His remarks
were received with great favor, both by the
members Of the Society and by the public
press and for his own agency in bringing
about the reform he was much and deservedly
complimented The code has since been dis
cussed at length in the London papers. The
Ueekh .Ne,os publishes the principal parts o.
il and styles 1t a master piece of legal reform"
The Times endorses 1t To the fullest extent !
TO show how thoroughly that conservative
onrna is impressed with the necessity of an
entire alteration of the old system, we quote
the final paragraph of its last article on the sub
Ject:
sat the present moment there is Commission
laboring, and believe earnestly laboring, 10
improve and simplify our system OF procedure.
But from the suggestions which have been circu-
lated, we see clearly that no real good will be
complshed-and this, not because the commits
sioners lukewarm, or swayed by mere profes
siona motives, but simply because they are at
tempting 10 improve by small alterations system
radically bad--a system based upon false princi
ples--which consists Of unmcaning technicaties
instead OF being the result Of that common
which governs all of us in the ordinary transactions
of life. II these gentlemen would proceed at once
10 the of the evilif they would boldly in
qure whether our present system of pleading is
not in its very foundations false irrational, and
unmeaning; II they would fairly discuss the ques-
ton whether the whole formal part Of it might
be at once set aside, and simple measure
adopted whether common ordinary language
ought not to be employed in place Of an uninte
zibIc jargon; and If they would ina candid spirit
take lesson from experience, and inquire into
the working of the system now established in the
State oi New York, we should then indeed have
little fear as 10 the result. We do not believe that
prcconceived opinions would shut their minds
against the reception Of the truth, but that bring
ang acute aud honest intellecs 10 the investigation
of what would be to them very simple matter,