AMENDMENT OF THE CRIMINAL LAW— QUESTION. (Hansard, 2 February 1854)

THE LORD CHANCELLOR

said, that his noble and learned Friend was in error in supposing that it was by direction of that House that the opinions of the learned Judges were to be taken. It was, however, true that a communication had been made to the learned Judges on this subject—under these circumstances. Their Lordships would recollect that one of the Bills introduced by his noble and learned Friend, his immediate predecessor, was one for codifying—if he might use that expression—the criminal law relating to offences against the person. When that noble and learned Lord resigned the Great Seal, and it was entrusted to him (the Lord Chancellor), he inquired of the noble and learned Lord whether he would prefer to hand it over to him, for him to adopt it, or deal with as he, and the Government might think fit, or to proceed with it himself: and the noble and learned Lord said that he was desirous of going on with the Bill himself—and he (the Lord Chancellor) need 206 hardly tell the House that he was glad the task should be in such able hands. His noble and learned Friend then introduced the Bill and a Select Committee was appoint, of which the noble and learned Lord who had put this question, and the noble and learned Lord the Chief Justice, and indeed all the law Lords in that House, besides other Peers who took an interest in the matter, were members; and they went very laboriously through the subject for eleven entire days. The Committee, owing to circumstances to which he need not advert, did not, however, conclude their labours; but the Bill, in the form into which it had been brought, was printed. The gentlemen by whom the Bill had been prepared proceeded in the same way with other branches of the criminal law, and before the end of the last Session, he (the Lord Chancellor) laid on the table another Bill which they had framed, namely, a Bill for Consolidating the Laws as to Larceny. He confessed that during the summer, on looking attentively through the first Bill, after it had undergone all these different investigations, he thought it was still in an unsatisfactory state, and he now almost despaired of being able to get the Bill into a more satisfactory form. Generally speaking, however, it was as nearly perfect as they could expect such Bills on such a subject to be on coming up from a Select Committee; and he thought the course to pursue that would be most respectful to their Lordships, and most useful for guiding them as to how far it was expedient to proceed with such a Bill, was send a letter to all the Judges during the long vacation, requesting them to give him their opinion on the subject; but feeling on his return, that that was not sufficiently definite, he wrote a second letter, accompanied by that Bill and others, and requested them to look upon that Bill as being a specimen as nearly perfect a Bill probably could be made in passing through Parliament, and to tell him whether, regarding it in that spirit, they thought the consolidation of the whole of the criminal law, arriving at such a degree of perfection as that Bill had attained, mind be an improvement or otherwise; and he begged them further to tell him if any observation occurred to them on the details of that Bill. From nearly all the judges he had received answers, and he should be ready to lay them on the table the House; but he would rather delay doing so for a few days, because there re- 207 mained one or two of the Judges who had not yet communicated with him—but he expected to receive their opinions in a few days. As soon as he had received the whole he would lay them on the table, in order that he might obtain the assistance of his noble and learned Friend, and other learned Lords, in determining whether, having regard to the opinions of the Judges, it would be wise to prosecute that course or not.