The republic., 1851-07-16
ENGLISH REPORTS IN Law AND
EA VFTX

1
| Proposals bu LITTLE & BRowN Il2 Washington
slreet, Boston, for Publishing by subscription nelD
series of Lao and Equity Reports.
/ VNHE 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
iy and cheaply furnished to the legal profession in
this country, has long been seriously felt and ac-
4 knowledged. To meet similar want in England
the "LaiD Journal Reports" and "Ihe Jlrist," {"
which, together report decsions in all the Courts
LGI1 and Equity, within few weeks after their
delivery, were commenced a number of years
since, and have met with the universal approba-
tion Of the legal profession. Their high cost, how
ever, has hitherto prevented their general circu-
lation in this country, and their merits yet
but little known among
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 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 member Of the bar, with notes and re-
| fcrences 10 analogous American decisions.
Each number will consist of over three hnndred
pages closely printed octave, on the best paper, and
in clear, fair type, and will tain table of cases.
! and full table of contents, thus forming COM
| plete Volume by itself, as well part of an
| tire series Every alternate or second number will
be PACED consecutivey from the number imme-
dately preceding, and will contain table of cases,
and of contents to both, and thus form complete
volume, ready for binding, of siG hundred pages
In each volume the cases OF the several courts will
| be found arranged together, and III point of style
and typographical execution, this series will be
fully equal to the best reports of England or this
country.
Itis designed to make this PERMANENT PUBL
"A ap xprIf Of
| 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 tio0 years before they
could othsriose 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
volumes, handsomely and uniformly bound in law
| sheep, $l2.
Tie parts will be sold separately, il desired, at
| 81 each.
| Single volume, bound, So 25.
Parts 1. and H., stitched, or Vol. H. bound in law
| sheep, containing reports of one hundred and
! eighty y-eight cases, now ready for delivery.
The following among the opinions of this
work expressed on the publication Of the fret num-
| ber:
Letter from Hon Millard Fillmore, President of the
United States
WAsHINGToN, April 13, 1851.
| JAMES BRowN, ESQ.,: My DEAR SIR--Some days
since l 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
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 iumined its profoundest depths con-
slider no law library complete that does not contain
he IN Law nd 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 abbrevaton of each
CAGE, 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 sc condensed reports'' |
therefore nailed with great pleasure effort which
was made som fine since to republish the whole.
If the English Repurss entire, can be republished
with despatch in this country, at price so low as
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. i am your obedient
servant, WILLARD FILLMORE.
From the Ne,o York Literary World
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 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 Lato Journal Reports and
the Jurist two English serials which communicate
to the British Bar, within a 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 mightbe followed with great advantagein this
cnt tnr he nj nj tafI tIn n ala
which necessarily attends the issuing of the regu
lar volumes of reports of particular courts and
are glad to sec the enterprise of our legal pub
lishe-s availing themselves of it, to introduce the
English Reports promptly and regularly to the pro-
esson. The authority of Westminster Hall has lost
nothing of its sanction and the permanently high
character Of the English Judiciary gives to their
adjudications continued weight and decisive in
huence with our 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 vigi
| lance. This difficulty Messrs. Little & Browns
| Reports will remove; the 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 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
Nolulhe VI reportb i5 pupliSucu on tnc
| other side and has then been reprinted on this.
One advantage of the present series is, that the
decisions which it 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 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, Sc, 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 reatises 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
ers in general, 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
hot both