The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-07-04
ENGLISH REPORTS IN LAW AND
Hsn

street, Boston, for publishing By subscription ne,D
series Of Laio and Equity Reports.
TINHE want of some system by which the decisions
IL 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 ac-
! knowedged To meet similar want in England
the "LGio Journal Reports" and "Ihs JErist,"
which, together report decisions in all The Courts in
LGU 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-
lation in this country, and their merits are as yet
but little known among IL
The subscribers propose to republish 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 Railway and Canal
Gases.
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 a 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 best paper 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 well part of an
tire series. Every alternate or second number will
| be PACED consecutiyely from the number imme-
daely preceding, and will contain table of cases.
and of contents TO both, and thus form a complete
volume, ready for binding of ousr sr 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.
tits designed to make this PERMANENT PUBL
| CATION, and thus establish neo series of English
| Law and Equity Reports, which shall, in all
| 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 Hail. nearly tico years before they
could othiose be obtained, and long before the pub
| cation of the contemporaneous decisions OF most
/ of our own tribunals.
! The price of this publication will be $40 for
! twelve numbers payable in advance, for the six
volumes, Handsomely AID uniformly bound in law
! sheep, $l2.
The parts will be sold separately, if desired, at
/ s each.
Single volume, bound So %.
Parts |. and H. stitched, or VOL l., bound in law
| sheep, containing reports OF one hundred and
! eighty eight cases, ready for delivery.
! The following among the opinions Of this
work expressed on the publication of the first num-
! Der:
Lett& frsm Hon. 1Tiilard Fillmore, President of The
| United States.
WAsHINaToN, April 10, 1851.
JAMES BRowN, ESQ: My DEAR SIR Some days
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, inquiring
nay opinion OF the enterprise.
While pursuing my profession, took deep in
| erest in publications OF this kind. The able
judges who have adorned the judicial tribunals oG
England, have shed lustre upon the Common
Law, and illumined its profoundest depths. con-
slider no law library complete that does not contain
sleir 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 g 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 Digests, which deemed very important,
wholly omitted in the ''condensed reports"
therefore hailed with great pleasure effort which
was made some time since to republish the whole.
If the English Reports entire, be republished
with despatch in this country, at a price so 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 obedieni
servant, WILLARD FILLMORE
From The Nelo York Literary World
Mcssrs Little & Brown, of Boston, whose law
books, i'll 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, are the Lam Journal Reports and
the Juist, 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 mightbe followed with great advantag in this
country, for the purpose of obviating the delay
which necessarily attends the issuing of the regu
lar volumes of reports OF particular courts and
we are glad to see the enterprise of our legal pub
fishers availing themselves OF it, to introduce the
English Reports promptly rand regularly to the pro-
fession 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 way in which the current iurispru-
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 vigi,
lance This difficulty Messrs Little Browns
| Reports will remove; the decided. i'll the
! Queens Bench, the Common Pleas, and the Ex-
| chequcr Chamber in January, will be ready for de-
livery here in April or May, long before adjudged
cases of the same date in our courts appear in
the regular reports in which they perpetuated.
Nearly two years will thus be gained over the pre-.
sent system, which requires delay until the large
! other side and has then been reprinted on this.
| One advantage of the present series ia, that the
decisions which gives 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 edited by f. II. Bennett and
Chauncy Smith, esqs, of the Boston bar. and their
systematic arrangement, and the care with which
the notes, index, &c, are prepared, evidence the
thorough manner in which the proposed series will
| be carried out
| In this connexion we take pleasure in advertng
to Messrs. Little and Browns other legal publica-
| tions, among which are included many of the most
conspicuous and authoritative treases of our iuris
prudence. Judge Storyb works, for ming library
almost Of themselves, and familiar for their high
| value and extensive reputation to American read.
ers in general, az 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 also
issued by them, the United Stdtes 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 preservaton,
than under the old regime OF public printing at
! Washington which included the annual statutes,