The republic., 1851-10-25
ENGLISH IsEPORrs IN LAW AND
r.n IrunNN

M and judicial opinions of the several Courts of
Law and Equity in England can be more prompt
ly and cheapy furnished TO the legal profession in
this country has long been seriously felt and nc
knowledged To meet a similar want in England, |,
the ''Laip Journal Reports" and " The JTist =
which, together report decisions IN all the Courts ti
Lac and Equity, within few weeks after their
delivery, were commenced number of years
since, and have met with the universal approba-
ton of the legal profession Their high cost, how
ever, has hitherto prevented their general circu-
laton in this country, and their merits are as yet
but little known among us.
The subscribers propose to repuollsh these re,
ports in full as fast they appear in England and
can be received here They will contain reports
of cases decided in the House OF Lords, the Privy
Council, the several Courts of Equity, the Court OF
Queens Bench the Court of Common Pleas, the
Court of Exchequer and Exchequer Chamber, the
Ecclesiastical and Admiralty Courts, the Court of
Bankruptcy, including also the Election cases, the
Crown Cases Reserved, and the Hallway and Canal
| Cases.
These reports will be published in numbers
/ parts, commencing with the decisions of Michael
mas (November) term, 1850, and will be carefully
edited by member of the bar, with notes and re-
! ferences to analogous American decisions.
Each number will consist of over three hundred
pages closely printed octave, on the stpaper, and
in clear fair type and will contain table of cases,
and full table of contents, thus forming a COM
pete volume by itself, as we'll as part OF an en-
tire series Every alternate or second number will
be PACED consecutivey from the number imme-
diately preceding and Will contain table OF cases,
and of contents TO both, and thus form complete
volume, ready for binding, of sic hundred pages
In each volume the of the several courts will
be found arranged together, and, in point of style
and Typographical execution, this series will be
fully equal TO the best reports OF England or this
country.
| ltis designed to make this PERMANENT PUBL
CATION, and thus establish series of English
| Law and Equity Reports, which shall, in all re-
spects be far in advance of any other reprint OF
English Reports in this country, and which shall
/ furnish to the American lawyer the decisions of
|
could othertoise be obtained and long before the pub
lication of the contemporaneous decisions of most
! of our own tribunals.
The price of this publication will be $40 for
twelve numbers payable in advance, or for the six
I volumes, handsomely and uniformly bound in law
sheep, $l2.
The parts will be sold separately, If desired, at
! 81 each.
Single volume, bound, So 25.
Parts /. and H., stitched, Vol. L., bound in law
sheep, containing reports OF one hundred and
The following among the opinions of this
work expressed on the publication of the frat num-
! ber:
Letter from Hon. lIiard Fillmore, President of the
United States.
WAsHINoToN, April Is 1851.
JAMES BRowN, ESQ.,. My DEAR SIR-Some days
since | received, by the hand of the Postmaster
General, the first number OF the English Reports,
! which you propose to repubsh In this country,
! comprising every reported in England and L
have your letter of the 9th instant, inquiring
my opinion of the enterprise.
/ While pursuing my profession, | took deep in
! terest in publications of this kind The able
| judges who have adorned the judicial tribunals of
England, have shed lustre upon the Common
Law, and illumined its proioundest depths con-
slider no law library complete that does not contain
/ their principal reports in Law and Equity, and in
their Ecclesiastical Courts, and in Admiralty. For
/ some years had been in the habit of receiving
\ these in So condensed" form. This condensation,
however consisted, not in an abbreviation of each
I but n frOm cas-
was often annoyed by finding reference to cases
in the Digests, which deemed very important
wholly omitted in the ' condensed reports" /
therefore hailed with great Pleasure an effort which
was made some time since to repubsh the whole
If the English Reports entire, can be repubshed
with despatch in this country, at price 50 low
| to bring them within the reach of the members of
the bar generally, conceive that it will confer
great benefit upon the profession and the judiciary,
and consequently upon the country at large. Know
ing your enterprise anticipate your success, and
| can only express the hope that your reward may
be equal to your merits ! am your obedient
servant, MiLLARD FILLMORE.
Erom the NetO York Literary JForld.
Messrs Little & Brown, of Boston, whose law
books, in point OF typographical execution, vie
with the best similar Issues of the English press,
and in point of value and importance are inferior
to none in this country, have Just commenced the
publication of legal series, deserving the especial
attention of the profession throughout the country
The basis of this series, of which the first num-
Der is before US, the Lao Journal Reports and
the .Jt1iSt, two English serials which communicate
to the British Bar, within few weeks after their
delivery, the prominent decisions Of all the courts
from the House of Lords to the Court of Bankrupt
cy, and other tribunals of limited but practically
important Jurisdiction. This excellent arrange.
nent might be followed with great advantage in this
country, for the purpose of obvatng the delay
which necessarily attends the issuing of the regu
lar volumes Of reports of particular courts and
glad to see the enterprise of our legal pub
lishers availng themselves of it, to introduce the
patN la and
fession. The authority of Westminster Hall has lost
nothing of its sanction and the permanently high
character OF the English Judiciary gives to their
adiudicatons ntinued weight and decisive in
Huence with our courts Hitherto the difficulty has
been that the reported cases thorc have grown old
before they could be quoted and applied here, and
there was no way in which the current iurispru-
denCe and adJudcations OF the day in the English
courts could be made available by the American
bar except at great expense and by continual vigi
lance. This difficulty Mcssrs. Little &I Browns
Reports will remove; the cases decided in the
Queens Bench, the Common Pleas, and the Ex-
chequer Chamber in January, will be ready for de-
livery here in April or May, long before adjudged
cases of the same date IN our own courts appear in
the regular reports in which they are perpetuated
Nearly two years will thus be gained over the pre-.
sent system, which requires delay until the large
volume of authorized reports is published the
other side and h hen been reprinted on this.
One advantage # the present series is, that the
decisions which il gives those of courts in banc
the deliberate judgments of The bench, and not the
less rellaDlc DECISIONS AT INtSt ETiuS, which, how
ever interesting in many instances, do not carry
with them the same authority and force,
The Reports are edited by e. II. Bennett and
Chauncy Smith, esqs, of the Boston bar, and their
Systematic arrangement and the care with which
the notes, index, &c, prepared, evidence the
thorough manner IN which the proposed series will
be carried out.
In this connexicn we take pleasure in advertng
to Messrs Little and Browns other legal publica-
tons, among which are included many of the most
conspicuous and authoritative treatses of uris
prudence. Judge Storys works, for ming library
almost of themselves, and familiar for their high
value and extensive reputation to American read
ers in general, as well to the legal profession
have all issued from their press; have also the
several works of Professor Greenleaf Two very
valuable and extensive annual publications are also
Issued by them, the United States Digest and the
Statutes at Large; the latter being the authorized
edition of the Acts of Congress, got up in much
better style, both for reference and preservation,
| than under the old regime of public printing at
/ Washington, which included the annual statutes
and sent them forth to the world thin paper and
/ in bad type.
From the Ne,o York EUening Post.
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