The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-07-31
ENGLISH REPORTS IN Law AND
EQUITY.

street, Boston, for publishing by subscription nso
series Of La,c and Equity Reports.
| 1NHE want OF some system by which the decisions
l. and judicial opinions of the several Courts OF
Law and Equity in England can be more prompt
y and cheapy furnished to the legal profession in
this country, has long been seriously felt and
knowedged. To meet similar want in England
the LAO Journal Reports" and "1ns Jarist,''
which, together report decisions in all The Courts
Lao and Equity, within a few weeks after their
delivery, were commenced a 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-
lation in this country, and their merits as yet
| but little known among us.
The subscribers propose to republish these re-
ports in full as fast as they appear in England and
can be received here. They will contain reports
of cases decided in the House of Lords, the Priyy
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 Gases Reserved, and the Railway and Canal
| Cases.
! These reports will be published in numbers or
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-
! fercnces to analogous American decisions.
| Each number will consist of over three hundred
pages closely printed octave, the best paper and
in clear fair type, and will contain table of cases.
and full table of contents, thus forming a COM
plete volume by itself, well 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 a complete
volume ready for binding, Of oDer siT 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 10 the best reports OF England or this
country.
| Its designed TO make this PERMANENT puBLI-
CATION, aud thus establish a 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
Westminster Hall, nearly ttoo years before they
could otherwise be obtained and long before the pub
LEGATION OF the contemporaneous decisions of most
The price of this publication will be $40 for
twelve numbers, payable in advance, for the six
volumes, handsomely and uniformly bound in law
sheep, $l2
The parts will be sold separately, il desired, at
s. each.
Single volume, bound, So %.
Parts l. and H., stitched, or Vol. L., bound in law
sheep, containing reports OF hundred and
eighty eight cases, now ready for delivery.
The following among the opinions of this
work expressed on the publication of the first num-
Der:
Letter from Hon. Iillard Fillmore, President Of the
United States.
WAsHINGToN, 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 republish in this country,
comprising every case reported in England; and
now have your letter of the 9th instant, inquirng
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 profoundest 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 a GO condensed form. This condensation,
however, consisted, not in an abbreviation of each
case, but selection from the several cases, and
was often annoyed by finding reference to cases
in the Dgests, which deemed very important,
wholly omitted in the CONDENSED reports.' !
therefore hailed with great pleasure effort which
was made time since to republish the whole.
If the English Reports entire, can be republished
with despatch in this country, at price 30 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, WILLARD FILLMORE.
From The Ne,o York Literary IVorld.
Messrs. Little & Brown, Of Boston, whose law |
books, in point of typographical execution, vic \
with the best similar issues of the English press,
and in point of value and Importance are inferior
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 Lau Journal Reports and
the Jipist, two En- lish 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
ment might be followed with great advantagei in this |
country, for the purpose of obviating the delay |
,xtx Il
lar volumes of reports of particular courts and |
we glad to the enterprise of our legal pub
fishers avaing themselves OF it, to introduce the |
English Reports promptly and regularly to the pro-
ession The authority of Westminster Hall has Lost
nothing of its sanction and the permanently high |
character Of the English judiciary gives TO their /
adjudicatons continued weight and decisive in
uence with courts. Hitherto the difficulty has
been that the reported cases there have grown old
before they could be quoted and applied here and |
there was no way in which the current jurispru-
dence and adjudications of the day in the English
courts could be made available by the American
bar, except at great expense and by continual vigil
lance. This difficulty Messrs. Little & 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 adjudgcd
cases of the same date in own courts appear in
the regular reports in which they perpctuated.
Nearly two years will thus be gained over the pre-
sent system, which requires delay until the large
volume of authorized reports is published on the
other side and has then been reprinted on this.
One advantage of the present series is, that the
decisions which it gives are those of courts in banc
the deliberate judgments of the bench, and not the
less reliable decisions at Nisi Prius, which, how
ever interesting in many instances, do not carry
with them the same authority and force.
The Reports are edited by E. H. Bennett and
Chauncy Smith, esqs., of the Boston bar, and their
systematic arrangement, and the with which
the notes, index, &c, are prepared, evidence the
thorough manner in which the proposed series will
be carried out.
In this conncxion we take pleasure in advcrting
to Messrs. Little and Browns other legal publica-
tons, among which are included many of the most
conspicuous and authoritative treatises of our uris
prudence. Judge Story's works, for ming library
almost OF themselves, and familiar for their high
value and extensive reputation to American read
crs 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 Larger the latter being the authorized
edition of the Acts Of Congress, got up in much
better style, both for reference and preseryation