ATROPHY OF INSTITUTIONS FROM LACK OF USE 285 



same with special jurisdiction, such as the Eccle- 

 siastical Court, and the University Courts ; they 

 have completely degenerated, their functions having 

 been transferred to the jurisdiction of the Common 

 Law Courts. In England, however, special juris- 

 diction has not wholly ceased to be functional, for 

 there still exist, side by side with the modern 

 Courts of Justice, a few local Courts and other 

 exceptional forms of jurisdiction which are still 

 maintained in support of certain ancient acquired 

 rights and traditions. 1 By far the greater part of 

 these special jurisdictions have, however, fallen 

 into disuse, owing to the creation of the modern 

 Courts of Justice. This happened, for instance, 

 with the following institutions : 



(a) The Local Courts of Feudal origin. These 

 Courts have decreased both in number and impor- 

 tance since the close of the thirteenth century ; the 

 only vestiges now remaining of them are the Court- 

 leets of certain manors. Sir James Stephen makes 

 special mention of the Court-leet of the Manor of 

 Savoy, which extended from near the old city gate 

 of London (Temple Bar) up to Cecil Street. Some 

 of the old functions of this Court are maintained 

 in the present day. 



(b) Country Town Courts. Twenty-seven local 

 courts are mentioned in modern judicial statistics 

 before six of which no case has been heard for 

 twelve years. On the application of a litigant, 



1 Idem, Le systeme judiciaire de la Grande- Bretagne, i., p. 216. 



