fidence of the public. But, the ac- 
cumulation of business, and hardship 
_ that followed from the delay of jus- 
| tice, were not contned to the house 
of lords. Jt was found, that whe. 
ther from the defective constitution 
or faulty administration of the court 
of session, a similaraccamuiation of 
business had taken place befvre that 
court itself, so that from every part 
of Scotland, complaints were heard 
of the extraordinary delay altending 
its decisions. Delay was not, how- 
ever, the only defect complained of 
in the supreme judicature of Scot- 
land. ‘The variableness of its rules 
of decision ; the uncertainty of what 
were the principles, on which, in 
many cases,its judgments were fouund- 
ed ; its inattention to precedents 
and disregard of forms, together 
with the unnecessary and enormous 
expence of extracting * its decreets 
without which no etfect could be 
given to its judgment, were grounds 
of complaint no less just and well 
founded, nor less imperiously calling 
for some remedy. 
_ Soon after lord Grenville came 
into office, he applied his mind se- 
riously to consider of a proper re- 
medy for these evils, and after much 
deliberation with the persons best 
qualified to assist him with their ad- 
vice, he submitted to the house of 
lords the outlines of a plan, which 
he had devised for the reform of the 
court of session. This plan he laid 
before the house in the form of reso- 
lutions, which were printed, and 
erdered to lie over till next session 
of parliament, that they might in the 
mean time be maturely considered 
by those who were best enabled, by 
HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
95 
their professional and local know. 
ledge, to form an opinion of their 
merits, and judge of the degree ia 
which they were calculated to re. 
medy the defects of the existing sys- 
tem. <As this plan, however, did 
not come into discussion till the en- 
suing session of parliament, we shall 
avoid entering into the details of it 
at present, and merely state some of 
its most general outlines. 1t propos. 
ed then to divide the present court 
of session into three chambers, with 
concurrent jurisdiction, and an op. 
tion given tosuitors of carrying their 
causes before whichever chamber 
they liked best. It proposed also 
to introduce trial by jury in civil 
causes, on the model of that of En« 
gland ; and to.establish an interme. 
diate court of review, to which ap- 
peals from the chambers should be 
carried in the first instance, before 
they could be brought to the house 
of lords... The monstrous abuse of 
extracting the decreets of the court, 
in the manner now practised, was 
also proposed to be abolished, and 
provision made, to enable old and 
infirm judges to retire from office, . 
when no longer capable of discharg- 
ing its duties. We shall only add, 
that though considegable differences 
of opinion arose in Scotland, with 
respect to the subordinate parts of 
the plan, its general outline, (with 
the exception of that part relating 
to the court of review,) was very ge- 
nerally, we had almost said univer- 
sally, approved of in that kingdom. 
_ A bill brought into the house of 
commons by Mr. Tierney to explain 
and render more effectual the treat. 
ing act, alter undergoing several al- 
* An extract of a decreet (or decree) is an offce copy of the whole proceedings 
had in the cause, writs, pleadings, motions,arguments, interlacutory orders and final 
judgwent, 
Without paying fur this no party can avail himself of judgment. 
' = 
terations 
