COURTS OF EQUITY. (Hansard, 3 August 1840)

§ Lord Langdale
My Lords, I beg leave to express my approbation of this bill, and my hope that it may pass into a law during the present Session. If this bill had, as was intended, formed part of the bill for facilitating the administration of justice which lately passed this House—and if it had been followed by the bill for the regulation of the Chancery offices, which my noble and learned Friend on the woolsack has promised to introduce in the next Session—it might have been hoped, that the powers which this bill proposes to confer on the judges of the Court of Chancery, would have produced very extensive benefit. I am afraid, that without the increase of judicial power which was intended by the late bill, and without the power to regulate offices held by persons who have vested interests and to give compensation, the good to be effected by this bill will not be very great—but still it will enable the judges to do some useful things which they cannot now effectuate, and that alone is with me a sufficient reason for supporting the bill. But I confess, that my principal reason for wishing the bill to pass now, arises from what is to me the unintelligible withdrawal of the bill for facilitating the administration of justice from, the other House of Parliament. The urgent nature of that bill had been acknowledged by all; and the circumstances under which it passed this House, were, (considering the subject), not a little remarkable—there was an entire abandonment not 1195 only of all party feelings, but even of all personal feeling and peculiarities of opinion. Every noble Lord who attended to the subject was willing to forget himself and his own peculiar notions—to give up something which he might individually think desirable, or to agree to something which he might individually think rather more than necessary, for the sake of procuring a general concurrence in a most important measure, intended to redress grievances which required the most early attention—and that a bill so passed should have been voluntarily withdrawn, has unavoidably excited not only deep regret, but the greatest surprise. What justification or what excuse is there for a proceeding so extraordinary? No reason deserving the least attention has been assigned. There are those who will naturally suppose that this proceeding must have arisen either from ignorance of the nature and pressure of the grievance intended to be redressed—or from an insensibility to the suffering meant to be relieved—and my principal reason for desiring to pass this bill now, and with this rapidity, is, that it will afford to the country and to the suitors of the Court of Chancery some slight pledge, some earnest however small, that the Legislature is not indifferent to the evils which have been proved to exist in the Court of Chancery.

§ Lord Lyndhurst
said, he should very much like to know what the noble Viscount's intentions were with respect to this subject.

§ Viscount Melbourne
lamented as deeply as any noble Lord, that the bill which had been sent down to the Commons was not passed in the present Session. He fully admitted the urgency of the case, and that it was desirable to provide a remedy for the evils which that bill was intended to meet. The simple reason why the measure was not proceeded with this Session was, because it would undoubtedly have led to a greater extent of discussion than was convenient, or, in fact, than they would have been able to get through at this late period of the Session. Unquestionably, there did prevail great difference of opinion on the question, which would have been debated with all 1196 the ability, and would have excited all the interest, that such a subject was naturally calculated to call forth. The magnitude of the bill, the certainty that it would give rise to much discussion, and the inconvenience which at this period of the Session would arise from taking such a course, were the only reasons that prevented the bill from being proceeded with.

§ Lord Lyndhurst
expressed his belief, that if the noble Viscount had pressed the measure, no opposition whatever would have been offered to it. The rumour was, that the bill had been stopped by the law officers of the Crown, and some claims that had been made on Ministers. He knew from personal communication, that there was no intention on the part of any one to oppose the bill.

Lord Brougham
said, there seemed to be a misunderstanding with respect to what had taken place on this subject. The bill which had gone down from their Lordships' House was not withdrawn. It was proposed, that it should be read a second time on the 31st of August. If, therefore, Parliament was prorogued before that day, it could not be read a second time. That being the case, their Lordships might now send down this, the second bill. If a disposition existed to agree to a measure for the better administration of justice (and where there was a will there was a way)—if both sides were anxious to take that course, what was to prevent the other House from ingrafting on the present bill the provisions of the original bill, which now stood for a second reading on the 3lst of August? Thus that which was said to be the object of all parties, might, if they were sincere, be easily effected. His noble Friend at the head of the Government said, the rumours to which his noble and learned Friend referred were utterly without foundation ["No, no," from Lord Lyndhurst]; well, then, that his noble Friend thought them without foundation. Now, it was easy to put these statements to the test, for if the Government were still desirous that the provisions of the measure should become law during the present Session, it would be easy for his noble Friend the Secretary for the Colonies to ingraft upon the present bill, when it reached the other House, the most important parts of the measure, the second reading of which had been postponed, and if those who sat on the Opposition side of the House were anxious, 1197 according to the representation of his noble and learned Friend, for the success of the measure, they might agree to such a course being taken, and in this way the difficulty would be got rid of.