§ The Order of the Day for their Lordships to resolve themselves into Committee—on the Local Jurisdiction Bill was read.
§ Lord Lyndhurstsaid, the object of this Bill was to establish an extensive change in the legal institutions of the country, and therefore he thought that their Lordships ought to have the fullest opportunity of judging of the nature of the measure. Now, it was his opinion that their Lordships were not in a condition to understand the details of the Bill at present. On reading the Bill, he found it quite unintelligible in some particulars. One of these was, that it referred to six or seven schedules which had never been before their Lordships—which had never been submitted to their consideration. 1063 It appeared to be absolutely necessary, before taking any further steps, to have these schedules before them.
The Lord Chancellorsaid, if his noble and learned friend had turned his attention to the nature of the schedules, he would have seen, that it would have been totally out of the ordinary course to detain the House until they could be submitted to it. They related to mere details, and did not involve one matter connected with or touching upon the grand principle of the Bill. There were some of the schedules which could not come before that House, as that respecting fees, which must be kept out of the Bill. Another schedule altered the form of the record. Another contained the new formulary of pleading. It was the usual practice to consider the Bill before the schedules, although a deviation from that rule took place in the case of a bill of great importance, in which some of the schedules involved the whole principles of the measure. In this case, on leaving out the words referring to the different schedules the Bill would not be impaired, as far as the enactments contained in the body of it went.
§ Lord Wynfordagreed, that it was usual to consider Bills before examining their schedules; but he thought a short statement of their contents was necessary, in order to enable the House to see whether they ought to be postponed or not. He hoped the noble and learned Lord would postpone the Committee.
§ Lord Lyndhurstsaid, they were now about to enter into the consideration of the details of a bill before that Bill was printed, for he considered the schedules a most important part of the Bill. The usual course was, that a Bill should be printed; but the details of this Bill were not printed.
§ Earl Greysaid, they were not now considering whether they were to go into a Committee. That question was decided on the Second Reading of the Bill. The Bill was now to be committed, in order that the additional clauses and schedules might be added. When they were in Committee, he hoped that some progress would be made.
§ Bill committed.
§ Some verbal Amendments were made, and the House resumed.