HC Deb 04 August 1875 vol 226 cc543-4

[Progress 13th July.]

Bill considered in Committee.

(In the Committee.)

On Motion of Mr. ATTORNEY GENERAL, the following new clauses were agreed to, and added to the Bill:— (As to vacancies in any office within section 77 of principal Act.) Whereas, by the seventy-seventh section of the principal Act, it is provided that, upon the occurrence of a vacancy in the office of any officer coming within the provisions of the said section, the Lord Chancellor, with the concurrence of the Treasury, may, in the event of such office being considered unnecessary, abolish the same, or may reduce the salary, or alter the designation or duties thereof, notwithstanding that the patronage thereof may be vested in an existing Judge; but that nothing in the said Act contained shall interfere with the office of Marshal attending any Commissioner of Assize. And whereas it is expedient to add to the said section: Be it enacted, That, upon the occurrence of any vacancy coming within the provisions of the said section, an appointment shall not he made thereto for the period of one mouth without the assent of the Lord Chancellor, given with the concurrence of the Treasury; and, further, the Lord Chancellor may, with the concurrence of the Treasury, suspend the making any appointment to such office for any period not later than the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, and may, if it be necessary, make provision in such manner as he thinks fit for the temporary discharge, in the meantime, of the duties of such office. (Amendment of principal Act, s. 79, as to chamber clerks.) Be it enacted, That any person who, at the time of the commencement of this Act, shall hold the office of chamber clerk shall be eligible at any time thereafter for appointment to the like office, anything in the principal Act to the contrary notwithstanding; and that, if any such person shall be so appointed after the commencement of this Act, he shall, if the salary assigned to such office by or under the principal Act be less than the salary received by him at the time of the commencement of this Act, be entitled to receive a salary not less than that so formerly received by him so long as he shall retain such office, but shall not be entitled to receive or claim any pension in respect of his service.

SIR HENRY JAMES

moved, as an Amendment, to add to the 1st Schedule, after Rule 55, a Proviso to the effect that where any action or issue was tried by a jury, the costs should follow the event, in the manner heretofore existing in the Superior Courts of Common Law, unless upon special application, and for cause shown, the Judge before whom such action or issue was tried, or the Court, should otherwise order.

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

objected to the proposed Amendment.

MR. CHARLES LEWIS

supported it. The Schedule in its then form would make the law more uncertain than at present.

SIR HENRY JAMES

said, that as it was impossible at that time of the day to obtain an adequate discussion of an important question, he would withdraw his Proviso for the present, and bring it up again on the Report.

Amendment negatived.

House resumed.

Committee report Progress; to sit again To-morrow.