The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1852-02-28
ENGLISH REPORTS IN LAW AND
E0uITY.

street, Boston, for publishing by subscription
series Of La,o and Equity Reports.
[JNHE want of some system by which the decisions
i and judicial opinions of the several Courts OF
law and Equity in England can be more prompt
y and cheapiy furnished to the legal profession IN
this country, has long been seriously felt and &C
knowledged. To meet a similar want in Eng land,
the "I.a,o Journal Reports" and "Ihe Jlrist," "
which, together report decisions in all the Courts in
Lalo and Equity, within a 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
sver, has hitherto prevented their general circu-
iation in this country, and their merits as 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 cascs 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
Cases.
These reports will he published in numbers or
parts commencing with the decisions Of Michael
mas (November) term, 1885, 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, the beat paper and
in clear, fair type, and will contan table Of cases
and n full table Of contents, thus forming a com
tire series Every alternate or second number will
be PACED consecutively from the number iInme-
daeiy preceding, and will contain table Of cases,
and Of contents to both, and thus form complete
volume, ready for binding, of SIR 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.
Its designed to make this a PERMANENT PUBL
CATION and thus establish series OF English
Law and Equity Reports, which shall, in all re-
spccts, be far in advance of any other reprint Of
furnish to the American lawyer the decisions of
Westminster Hall, nearly tcO years before they
Could otherwise b6 obtained, and long before the pub
LEGATION of the contemporancous 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 aad uniformly bound in law
sheep, Sl2.
Tic parts will be sold separately, il desired, at
4 each.
sing,s volume, bound, So %.
Parts J. and H., stitched, or Vol. l. bound in law
sheep, containing reports OF one hundred and
eighty eight cases. now ready for delivery
The following are among the opinions of this
work expressed on the publication of the first num-
Lette, 6om Hon. DIalard Fillmore, President of The
b'iifcd States.
WAsHlsGTos, April 10 1851.
since | received, by the hand of the Postmaster
General, the first number of the English Reports,
which you propose to republlsh In this country,
comprising every reported in England; and
now have your letter of the 9th instant, nquiring
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 lumiped it's profoundest depths. con-
slider no law library complete that does not contain
their principal reports IN Law and Equity, and in
their Ecclesinstical Courts, and in Admiralty. For
some years | had been in the habit of receiving
these in a. condensed form. This condensation
however, consisted, not in an abbrcvation of each
rase, but selection from the several cases. and
was often annoyed by finding reference to cascs
in the Digcss. which deemed very important
wholly omitted in the CONDENSED reports" |
therefore hailed with great pleasure effort which
made some time since To republish the whole.
II the English Reports entue, 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 IL 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 ae Mem York Liferuy JGorid
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
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 fret num-
Der is before us, the Lam Journal Reports and
the JLHist, two English serials which communicate
to the British Bar. within few weeks after their
delivery, the prominent decisions of all the cohTt5
from the House of Lords to the Court Of Bankrupt
cy and other tribunals of limited but practically
important jurisdiction. This excellent arrange
might be follow with grea advantage in this
country, for the purpose OF obviating the delay
which necessarily attends the issuing Of the reg-
lar volumes of reports of particular courts and
glad to see the enterprise of our legal pub
fishers availing themselves OF it, ~ Introduce the
English Reports promptly aud regularly TO the pro-
fcssion. The authority of Westminster Hall has Loot
nothing of its sanction and the permanently high
character OF the English judiciary gives to their
adiudcatons "A continued weight and decisive in
huencc with our courts. Hitherto the difficulty has
been that the reported cases there have grown old
before they could be quoted and applied mere and
there no way in which the current jurispru-
dencc and authorizations of the day i'm the English
courts could be made available by the American
bar, except at great expense and by continual yigi-
lance. This difficulty Mossrs Little & Brown's
Reports will remove; the cases decided in the
Queens Bench, the Common Pleas, and the EI-
cbequer Chamber in January, will be ready for de-
livery here in April or May, long before adjudgcd
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 ID published on the
other eide and has then been reprinted ON this
One advantage OF the present series ia, that the
decisions which it gives those of courts in banc
the deliberate judgments Of tho bench and not the
less reliable decisions at Nisi Prips which, how
ever interesting IN many instances, do not carry
with them the same authority and force.
The Reports are edited by T.. 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.
Ia this connection We take pleasure ia advertng
10 Mcssrs. Little and Browns other legal publica-
tions, among which are included many ofthe most
conspicuous and authoritative trcatscs of our iuris
prudence. Judge StOry's works, for ming n library
almost Of themscves, and familiar for their hgh
value and extensive reputation to American read
crs In general, "a wcll as 20 the legal profession
have all issued from their press; have also tho
several works OF Professor Grcenleaf. Two very
valuable and extensive annual publications re also
J,sued 10y them, the United Stairs Digest and the
Statutes at Ldrge; the latter being the authorized
edition of the Acts of Congress, got IN in much