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COURT OF CHANCERY (IRELAND) ACT 1823
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CHAPTER LXI.
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An Act for the better Administration of Justice in the Court of Chancery in Ireland.[1]
[10th July 1823.]
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[Preamble.]
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[Ss. 1–4 rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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Penalty on any deputies or clerks taking any fees, &c. contrary to this Act, 100l.
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5. If any deputy or clerk, or other person whatever, employed in the several offices or places mentioned and specified in any of the tables to this Act annexed, . . . shall ask or demand, or shall have, take, accept, or receive from any suitor, solicitor, or other person whomsoever, save and except only from the principal officer by and under whom any such deputy or clerk or other person shall be immediately employed, any gift, fee, reward, or remuneration, for or by reason or on account or under pretext of any service of their own, or of any person or persons employed by or under them respectively, in any of the offices of the said Court of Chancery; or if any such deputy or clerk or other person shall ask or demand, or shall have, take, receive, or accept any gift, fee, or reward, gratuity, or remuneration, for or by reason or on account or under pretext of the services of their principals or employers, or for or by reason or on account or under pretext of any matter or thing whatever done in and about the business of their respective offices, other than and except only such fees and sums of money as shall from time to time be lawful under the provisions of this Act; every deputy, clerk, or other person so offending, shall, for every such offence, forfeit and lose the sum of one hundred pounds.
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Penalty on principals in offices taking fees, &c. contrary to this Act, 100l., with loss of office, and incapacity for holding office.
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6. If any person who shall hold any of the said offices mentioned and described in any of the tables to this Act annexed, shall, by himself or by his deputy, or by any clerk or person authorized on his behalf, wilfully and knowingly ask, demand, have, take, receive, or accept, directly or indirectly, any gift, fee, reward, gratuity, or remuneration, for or by reason or on account or under pretext of any service in any of the offices in the said tables specified, other than and except only such fees and sums of money as shall from time to time be lawful under the provisions of this Act, or shall wilfully and knowingly ask, demand, have, take, or receive or accept, directly or indirectly, any gift, fee, reward, gratuity, or remuneration, for or by reason or on account or under pretext of any service in any way concerning or relating to the business of any of the said respective offices, not then allowed to be taken under the provisions of this Act, every such person so offending shall for every such offence forfeit and lose the sum of one hundred pounds, and shall also forfeit and lose all and every office and offices in or under the said Court of Chancery, which such person shall hold or be possessed of at the time of such offence, and shall for ever after be incapable and incapacitated from holding any office in or under the said court.
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Oath to be taken by officers and clerks of the Court of Chancery.
Penalty on acting without having taken the oath, 20l. per day.
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7. No person whatsoever shall in anywise act in the business of any of the offices or places under the said Court of Chancery mentioned in the tables to this Act annexed or any of them, or shall do any Act relating to the business of any such office, whether as a principal or deputy, or a clerk, until such person shall have taken and subscribed before the lord chancellor or lord keeper or commissioners for the custody of the great seal of Ireland an oath in the form following; that is to say,
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‘I A.B. do solemnly swear, that I will, to the best of my knowledge, skill, and judgment, execute and perform such of the duties of the office of [here state the description of the office] in the Court of Chancery in Ireland, as I shall personally execute; and that I will well and faithfully pay every deputy or clerk, whom I shall or may at any time employ in any part of the business of the said office, such salaries and allowances as they shall from time to time be respectively entitled to by law, or such additional sum as I shall contract or agree to pay to them respectively; and that I will not, by myself, or by any deputy or clerk or other person or persons, ask or demand, or have, take, accept, or receive any gift, fee, reward, gratuity, or remuneration whatever, other than such as shall at the time of receiving the same be authorized and allowed by the tables which shall be then in force, or under the provisions of some Act of Parliament; and that I will in all things relating to my said office conduct myself according to the rules and regulations which shall from time to time be in force for the regulation of such office and of the business thereof.
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‘So help me GOD.’
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And any officer, deputy clerk, or other person who shall personally act in any matters relating to the business of any such office in the said court, without having taken and subscribed such oath as aforesaid, shall for every day on which he shall so act forfeit the sum of twenty pounds.
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Officers shall affix tables of fees in their offices under penalty of 20l. per day.
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8. Every officer of the said Court of Chancery shall, within three calendar months after he shall have taken the oath of office required by this Act, affix or cause to be affixed or hung up in his office a table of all such fees as it shall be then lawful to receive, pursuant to the directions of this Act, in his said office, in respect of the business thereof; and if at any time any of such fees shall be altered or abolished, or any new fee or fees authorized according to the directions of this Act, in respect of the business of such office, then and in every such case such officer shall, within one week from the time of such change, alter such table so kept in his office pursuant and according to such change and to the order for making the same; and such table shall at all times be written or printed in fair and legible characters, and shall be framed and glazed, so as to be preserved from being erased or altered in any other manner save as aforesaid, and shall be always kept affixed or hung up in such manner that the same shall be accessible to and legible by all persons resorting to such office; and in case such table shall not be so affixed or hung up, and continually kept so framed and glazed and legible in the said office, such officer shall, for every day on which such table shall not be so kept and legible as aforesaid in such office, forfeit the sum of twenty pounds.
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[Ss. 9–11 rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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Officers and clerks shall not practise as solicitors or attornies.
Penalty, 200l.
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12. . . . It shall not be lawful for any person who shall be hereafter appointed to hold any of the offices of the said court mentioned and specified in any of the tables to this Act annexed, or who shall hereafter be appointed a deputy or clerk to any person who now holds or shall hereafter hold any office, to act or practise, either in his own name or in the name of any other person or persons, as an attorney or solicitor in any of the courts of law or equity in Ireland; and every such officer or person who shall, directly or indirectly, by himself or any other person in partnership with or in trust for him, act as such attorney or solicitor, contrary to the true intent and meaning of this Act, shall, for every time he shall so act, forfeit the sum of two hundred pounds.
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Officer shall keep writing clerks in their offices, and pay them 1½d. per office sheet.
Officer shall not permit copies to be made elsewhere than in his office and by such writing clerks.
Penalty, 20l.
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13. All officers of the said Court of Chancery, who shall be entitled to any fees under the provisions of this Act, shall employ in their respective offices a sufficient number of writing clerks to make copies of bills, pleadings, affidavits, orders, decrees, and other things belonging to their respective offices, and required by or on behalf of the suitors of the said court, and to do and perform all other business requisite to be done and performed in such respective offices, so that the business of any suitor of the said court shall not be unnecessarily delayed therein; and such officer shall pay to every such writing clerk, for all copies made by such writing clerk, after the rate of not less than one penny halfpenny for every office sheet consisting of seventy-two words, of every such copy made by such clerk, and for a part or portion of any office sheet; and it shall not be lawful for any such officer to cause or direct or knowingly permit any such copy, or any part thereof, to be made in any other place, or by any other person, than in the proper office of such officer, and by a writing clerk employed in such office and paid exclusively by such officer after the rate aforesaid at the least; and every such officer shall be responsible for the accuracy of every copy so made in his office, and for the same being duly compared with the original from which it shall be made; and every such officer who shall cause or direct or knowingly permit any copy to be made contrary to this Act, or who shall not pay the writing clerk for writing the same according to the rate by this Act directed at the least, shall for every such offence forfeit the sum of twenty pounds.
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In case of want of room lord chancellor may make annual order for permitting copies to be made out of the offices.
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14. Provided always, that if at any time or times it shall be ascertained by affidavit or otherwise, to the satisfaction of the lord chancellor of Ireland or the lord keeper or the commissioners for the custody of the great seal of Ireland, that any officer of the said court hath not in his office sufficient room for the reasonable accommodation of himself, his deputies and assistants, and of a sufficient number of clerks to do and perform the business so required to be done in such office as aforesaid, then and in every such case it shall and may be lawful to and for such lord chancellor, lord keeper, or commissioners, to make an order declaring that the same has been so proved, and that it shall be lawful for such officer to cause, direct, or permit any such copy, or any part thereof, to be made in any place and by any person whatever; and that for every copy or part of a copy which shall be so made in any other place than the said office, such officer, in ascertaining and charging his fees in respect thereof, shall allow out of the fees usually payable on such copies or parts of copies one penny halfpenny for every office sheet thereof; and every such order shall be good and valid, and shall be a sufficient justification in all respects to any person acting in pursuance thereof, for one year from the date thereof, unless sooner rescinded, and shall and may be renewed from time to time, until, by reason of new buildings or new arrangements or otherwise, sufficient room shall have been obtained for the purposes in that behalf aforesaid; and the residue only of the fees to which such officer would then be lawfully entitled in case such copying had been regularly done in his office, which shall remain after such deduction as aforesaid, shall be deemed and taken to be the lawful fees or fee of such officer in such case.
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Solicitors may prepare copies of decrees, affidavits, &c.
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15. Provided also, that it shall and may be lawful for any solicitor of the said Court of Chancery to prepare for the attestation of the proper officers of the said court copies of all or any such decrees, reports, accounts, affidavits, and other matters or things, as such solicitor shall have occasion to file; and that every such officer shall compare and attest such copy, and shall in such case deduct and allow out of the fee payable to such officer for such attested copy the sum of one penny halfpenny for every office sheet thereof, and shall mark the fees on such documents pursuant to this Act, as if such copy had been prepared by such officer; and further, that it shall and may be lawful for any solicitor of the said Court of Chancery to prepare drafts of decrees, and all other documents, in like manner as the solicitors of said Court have heretofore been accustomed to do.
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In all copies, &c. concluding fraction of a sheet, &c. may be charged as a whole sheet, &c.
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16. In all copies, engrossments, exemplifications, or extracts of any rules, pleadings, decrees, or other matters chargeable according to the length thereof, whether the charge for the same shall be computed according to the sheet, the skin, the roll, or the side, a fraction of a sheet, skin, roll, or side respectively of any such copy, engrossment, exemplification, or extract, may be charged for by any officer as an entire sheet, skin, roll, or side; provided that on each such copy, engrossment, exemplification, or extract respectively, there shall be charged only one such fraction of a sheet, skin, roll, or side respectively.
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In all copies, sums, dates, and numbers shall be expressed in figures, and charged as such.
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17. In all copies of schedules and accounts whatsoever issued from any office in the said Court of Chancery, the charge or fee whereupon is or are or shall or may be lawfully computed according to the contents, all sums of money and dates of the year and days of the month and numbers shall be expressed in figures, and shall be charged as if the same were expressed in figures and not in words, in manner and according to the directions following; (that is to say,) one pound or any number of pounds shall be charged as one word; one shilling or any number of shillings shall be charged as one word; one or more penny or pence, whether with or without any fraction of a penny, shall be charged as one word; any fraction of a. penny not joined with any penny or pence shall be charged as one word, whether the same shall occur singly or shall be combined in any mode or form whatsoever; and any definite number whatever shall be charged as one word and no more.
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Amount of fees charged shall be endorsed on all copies and documents issued from offices.
Charge of documents not so endorsed shall not be allowed on taxation of costs.
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18. Upon the back of all copies, engrossments, exemplifications, and writings which shall be issued from any office of the said Court of Chancery, or by any officer of the said court, there shall be endorsed and written by the said officer or his sufficient deputy or clerk the full amount of all office fees charged on such copy, engrossment, exemplification, or writing respectively, and the rate of such fees, and the mode of charge according to which such fees shall be computed, and the number of sheets, skins, or sides on which such fees shall be charged or calculated; and upon any taxation of costs between party and party or between attorney and client, such copy, engrossment, exemplification, or writing shall be proudced before the taxing officer, in all cases where it shall appear to him practicable; and it shall not be lawful for the taxing officer to allow any charges of any solicitor or attorney, with respect to any such document so produced, upon which the amount and rate of fees shall not be so endorsed; but all and every such charge shall be struck out of the bills of such solicitor or attorney by such taxing officer.
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Taxing officers shall examine into justice of charges in bills of costs.
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19. Upon all taxations of bills of costs, whether between party and party or between attorney and client, it shall be the bounden duty of the taxing officer, whether he shall be required so to do or not, and whether any objection shall have been made or not, to examine and ascertain, by all reasonable methods, that each and every charge in any bill of costs contained (whether such shall be a fee for counsel, solicitor, or officer of court, or stamp duty, or any other disbursement whatsoever, or any charge for business done by the person charging the same) is the proper charge which, under the circumstances of the case, ought to be made; and upon all such taxation the taxing officer shall determine upon all charges made by any officer of the Court of Chancery, and allow only such as shall appear to him made according to the true right of such officer respectively.
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[Ss. 20–23 rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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Duties of deputy keeper of the rolls and clerk of the enrolments.
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24. The duties of the office of deputy keeper of the rolls and the clerk of the enrolments shall be distributed and executed in manner following; that is to say, the deputy keeper of the rolls, in addition to the duties of superintending in general the performance of the ministerial duties in the rolls office, and the other duties heretofore discharged by him with respect to the attested copies of pleadings and certificates, shall, in person or by proper persons duly employed in his office, keep the rough bill book, and insert therein the name or names of the plaintiff or plaintiffs, and defendant or defendants (as the case may be), the counsel’s name, and the name of the . . solicitor respectively, the time of filing the bill . .; and shall also in like manner, within one week from the filing of each bill, enter the same in the book of pleadings; and shall also in like manner enter into the said book of pleadings all answers, pleas, demurrers, replications, and rejoinders; and shall in like manner make the entries and do the duties as to amended bills and pleadings heretofore discharged by the clerk of the enrolments; . . . and the clerk of the enrolments shall in like manner make searches and discharge the duties in relation thereunto, and attend the masters under orders to expunge where pleadings are reported scandalous, prolix, or impertinent, and attend the masters and courts of justice with the records when offered in evidence, and make all enrolments and enter and index the same; and further shall in like manner open and keep in the office, as part of the public books thereof to which reference may be had, a calendar or index of the decrees to be enrolled; which calendar or index shall be kept in the same manner, containing similar heads, and specifying similar particulars, as the index furnished at the rolls-office by the commissioners of public records of Ireland, and shall be continued from the first day of Hilary term one thousand eight hundred and twenty-three, mentioned in such index; and the clerk of the said enrolments shall in like manner complete the entry of all decrees enrolled in the preceding term and vacation on or before the first sitting day of each ensuing term.
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[Ss. 25–32 rep. 53 & 54 Vict. c. 33. (S.L.R.)]
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Master shall make orders as to payment of costs of meetings had on summons before them.
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33. And whereas it frequently happens that delays and adjournments of meetings on references and proceedings in the offices of masters in Chancery frequently take place, for the accommodation and convenience or through the negligence and non-attendance of one of the parties concerned in such reference or proceeding; and it is unreasonable and unjust that the party attending and prepared to proceed should pay the expence of meetings so rendered nugatory by the non-attendance of the opposite party, even though such opposite party should, by a final decree or otherwise, be ordered to pay the several costs of the cause; and according to the present practice of the Court of Chancery the masters in Chancery have not any power or authority to make any order touching the costs of the proceedings before themselves: Be it therefore enacted, that at any and every meeting which shall be had before any master of the Court of Chancery in Ireland upon summons issued in manner aforesaid, the master shall on the back of the summons for such meeting to be produced to him according to the directions of this Act endorse or cause to be endorsed and shall sign such order, as under the circumstances of the case shall to him seem fit, as to the payment of the costs of such meeting, and as to the person or persons by whom the costs of such meeting shall be paid, as between party and party, or whether such costs shall abide the rule, order, or decree as to the payment of costs which may be made on the hearing of the cause, or whether such costs shall be paid by the complainant or defendant or other party in the cause or matter, independent of any general order or decree which may be pronounced by the court as to the general costs of such cause or matter, or whether as between solicitor or client, the costs of such meeting in the master’s office, so as aforesaid rendered nugatory, shall constitute a fair and reasonable charge against the client; and every such summons, with such order so thereon endorsed and signed by the said master, shall, on the taxation of such costs, be produced to the master when taxing such costs, who shall allow or disallow the costs in respect thereof accordingly, either as between party and party, or as between solicitor and client, or otherwise, according to the order so as aforesaid endorsed on the back of such summons; and in no case shall the master, upon the taxation of any bill of costs, allow any sum or sums as and for the expences of any such meeting or proceeding, unless the summons on which such meeting was had be produced before such master at the time of such taxation.
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Where summons has been issued and is mislaid, costs of proceedings may be allowed in certain cases.
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34. Provided always, that in all cases where any summons shall issue for any proceeding before the said master, and that such summons shall be lost and mislaid, that in such case it shall and may be lawful to allow the costs of such proceedings on a taxation of costs, in case it shall appear by an entry in the master’s book, or by such other evidence as to the said master shall appear sufficient, that a summons has really and bonâ fide been issued on such proceedings.
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[Ss. 35–40 rep. 53 & 54 Vict. c. 33. (S.L.R.)]
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Officers of the court may be removed by lord chancellor for misconduct (except the master of the rolls, and any master).
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41. It shall and may be lawful to and for the lord chancellor of Ireland or the lord keeper or commissioners for the custody of the great seal of Ireland, upon complaint duly made, and after full inquiry into the alledged grounds thereof, by affidavit or otherwise, as he or they shall think fit, to remove any officer of the said court, except the master of the rolls, and except any master in ordinary of the said court, from his office, for any offence or misconduct therein, which such lord chancellor, lord keeper, or commissioners shall deem deserving of such punishment; and thereupen such officer shall cease to hold or be entitled to such office.
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[S. 42 rep. 53 & 54 Vict. c. 33. (S.L.R.)]
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Commissioners shall be appointed by masters, on reference from the court, to examine witnesses.
Their oath.
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43. [Recital.] In all cases where it may be necessary that an examination of witnesses should take place, either in chief in any cause, or in aid of any inquiry or account ordered or directed to be made or taken before any master in ordinary of the said court, other than the examinations of witnesses before the examinators of the said court, an order shall be made by such court for referring it to a master in ordinary of the said court, according to the usual practice of the said court in such case, to approve of and appoint one fit and proper person to act as examiner in all such cases so referred; and such person so to be approved of and appointed by such master shall, so far as the same is practicable, be totally unconnected with either or any of the parties interested in such cause; and such person so approved of and appointed shall be and shall be taken as and shall be considered to be an officer of the said Court of Chancery, and shall be subject to such summary interference and controul of the said court, as any other officer of the said court in this Act particularly mentioned; and a commission shall issue to such person so as aforesaid appointed, authorizing and empowering him to proceed in the examination of all such witnesses as may be necessary, in the same manner and according to the same forms as are at present established (save and except in cases where such established practice is altered by this Act) touching and concerning the examination of witnesses under commission to examine witnesses issuing out of the Court of Chancery in Ireland at any time before the commencement of this Act; and every person so approved of and appointed a commissioner to examine witnesses under the provisions of this Act, before he shall exercise any of the duties of such commissioner, shall take and subscribe before a master in ordinary or a master extraordinary of the said court the following oath, and such oath shall be annexed to the said commission, and shall be returned with the said commission to the said court, to be there filed and recorded; (that is to say,)
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‘I A.B. do swear, that I will, according to the best of my skill and knowledge, truly and faithfully perform the duty of a commissioner to examine witnesses pursuant to the powers vested in me by the annexed commission; and that I will truly, faithfully, and without partiality to any or either of the parties in this cause, take, write down the examinations and depositions of all and every witness and witnesses who shall be produced before and examined by me, upon the interrogatories filed for that purpose; and that until publication in the said cause shall duly pass, I will not publish, disclose, or make known any part of the purport or contents of any deposition of any witness to be taken by me; and further, that I will fairly and truly enter and set down in writing, in the dominical of such examination, the hours of the day on each day that I shall be employed as such commissioner, at which I shall respectively commence and conclude the examination of the witnesses under such commission, as also the real and true cause or causes of my not commencing such examination at or before eleven of the clock in the forenoon, if such should be the case, and also, of my not continuing such examination till three o’clock in the afternoon, if such should be the case, as also, by whose delay or default, so far as I can judge, such examination was not commenced and continued [as the case may be] from eleven o’clock in the forenoon till three in the afternoon.
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‘So help me GOD.’
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Commissioner may cross-examine witnesses; and shall receive fees, &c. as settlted by order of court.
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44. . . . It shall be lawful for every such commissioner to cross examine any witness produced before him, in case he shall be required so to do by any person against whom the direct examinations of such witness shall have been taken; and it shall be lawful for every commissioner so to be appointed to receive such fees and allowances for the execution of his duty in the examination of witnesses, and for the expences of such commissioner in travelling, and they shall respectively be subject to such other rules and regulations, as shall be for that purpose from time to time authorized, directed, and made by any order or orders of the said Court of Chancery.
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Chief examiners to appoint deputies only in cases of necessity allowed by the court.
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45. And whereas the chief examiners of the said court are by their appointments authorized to appoint deputies, and it is not fit that such power should be exercised without sufficient reason: Be it enacted, that no such chief examiner shall in any case appoint a deputy, unless and until the occasion for such appointment, and also the person to be appointed, shall have been approved of by the court, upon a petition verified by affidavit; and that nothing shall be considered by the court as a fit occasion for such appointment, but inability in the principal to attend, either from sickness or from unavoidable business; and such order shall be regularly entered in the registrar’s office; and no such appointment shall continue for any longer time than shall be allowed or directed by such order, either by fixing a precise time, or by some general words, or by reference to some matter capable of being distinctly ascertained, or in such other manner as the court shall think proper; and if any such appointment shall be made otherwise than as aforesaid, or for any longer period than as aforesaid, then and in every such case such chief examiner making such appointment, and also such deputy, if he shall presume to act therein, shall be deemed guilty of a contempt of the court, and be punished accordingly.
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Examiners and commissioners shall take the depositions personally.
Clerks to examiners shall take the oath hereby prescribed.
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46. Every examiner, deputy examiner, and commission examiner shall take down the depositions of all witnesses on their examination with his own hand, and no clerk shall be present at any such examination; and every clerk who shall be employed before publication, so as to have any access to any deposition or depositions, shall, before he shall act in the execution of such office, and he is hereby required to take and subscribe the following oath before the examiner by whom any such clerk shall respectively be so employed, and such examiner is hereby empowered and required to administer the said oath:
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‘I C.D. do swear, that according to the best of my skill and knowledge I will truly and faithfully execute and exercise the office of a copying clerk in the office of A.B. one of the examiners of his Majesty’s High Court of Chancery in Ireland, whereunto I am admitted, so long as I shall continue to hold the said office; and that I will also well and faithfully preserve and keep such of the King’s records wherewith I shall be entrusted, or whereunto I shall have access; and that I will not publish, disclose, or make known to any person or persons whatsoever the particulars or the purport or contents of any deposition or depositions copied or read by me in the execution of my said office, or to which I shall have access thereby, until publication thereof respectively shall duly pass.
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‘So help me GOD.’
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Masters may appoint clerks by instruments, to be enrolled.
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47. [Recital.] It shall and may be lawful to and for each and every or any master of the said court to appoint by instrument under hand and seal any person whom he shall think proper to be the clerk of such master, during his pleasure; and such instrument being enrolled in the said Court of Chancery, such person shall be such clerk accordingly, and shall as such be an officer of the said court; and no person shall be or be deemed or taken or considered to be to any purpose whatsoever the clerk of any of the said masters, but under and by virtue of such appointment so enrolled.
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Masters’ clerks shall take the oath hereby prescribed.
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48. Every such clerk of any master in Chancery, before he shall act as such in the examination of any witness, shall take the following oath before the master by whom he shall be appointed, or before any other master of the said court:
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‘I A.B. do swear, that I will, according to the best of my skill and knowledge, truly and faithfully execute and exercise the office of master’s clerk and examiner in the office of C.D. esquire, one of the masters of his Majesty’s High Court of Chancery in Ireland, so long as I shall continue to hold the said office; and that I will well and faithfully preserve and keep all such records, interrogatories, depositions, deeds, documents, and instruments whatsoever, wherewith I shall be intrusted, or whereto I shall have access under or by virtue of my said office; and that I will not publish, disclose, or make known to any person whatsoever, the particulars, purport, or contents of any deposition or depositions taken, copied, or read by me in the execution of my said office, or to which I shall have access thereby, until publication thereof respectively shall duly pass.
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‘So help me GOD.’
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Masters or their clerks may examine witnesses on accounts or inquires before them.
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49. In all cases where an examination shall be directed by the said Court of Chancery, upon, under, or in aid of any account, inquiry, or other matter whatsoever, which shall at any time be depending before any master of the said court, it shall and may be lawful to and for such master, if he shall think proper, and if he shall not so think proper, then to and for such his clerk in the presence of such master, if such master shall so think fit, without any commission whatsoever, to examine all witnesses who shall be produced before him, touching any matter as to which such examination of witnesses shall have been so directed, or arising thereout, and to take down in writing the depositions of all such witnesses, in the manner and form usual in such cases.
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Master not to accept of any thing for the appointment of clerk or examiner.
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50. It shall not be lawful for any master in ordinary in the said Court of Chancery to accept of any sum of money or security as money, or to stipulate for or receive any share or proportion of the profits of the said offices, or receive any other valuable consideration whatsoever, as and for a consideration for the appointment of any person whatsoever to the office or place of a clerk or examiner to said master in ordinary.
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[Ss. 51–54 rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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Salaries to accountant general, and his clerks, charged on the consolidated fund, viz.;
to accountant general 700l. per ann.; head clerk 400l. per ann.; second clerk 100l. per ann.; third clerk 80l. per ann.
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55. There shall be issued and paid and payable out of and charged and chargeable upon the consolidated fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (after paying and reserving sufficient to pay all such sum and sums of money as have been directed by any former Act or Acts of Parliament to be paid out of the said consolidated fund, but with preference to all other payments which shall or may be hereafter charged upon or payable out of the said fund) the annual sum of one thousand two hundred and eighty pounds Irish currency; and which sum of money so to be issued shall from time to time be applied in payment of the following sums; that is to say, to the accountant general of the said court, the annual sum of seven hundred pounds, for and in lieu of any salary to which he is by law entitled; to his head clerk, the sum of four hundred pounds; to his second clerk, the annual sum of one hundred pounds; and to his third clerk, the annual sum of eighty-pounds; . . .
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Accountant general may take certain fees on copies of accounts.
No other fee to be taken in his office.
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56. It shall and may be lawful for the said accountant general by himself or his clerks to ask, demand, and receive for all copies of all accounts extracted from the books of the said accountant general, the sum of two-pence for every line on the debtor side of such account, and the like sum of two-pence for every line on the creditor side of such account, if the said account shall consist of forty lines, or any less number on each side of the said account; and if the said account shall consist of any greater number of lines than forty on each side of the said account, then the sum of one pound and no more; and it shall not be lawful for the said accountant general, or any clerk or other person in his office, to ask, demand, or receive any fee for any certificate of any balance of stock or cash on any account in the books of the said accountant general, nor for any other business, matter, or thing whatsoever in or relating to the office of the said accountant general; and if any clerk or other person, who shall hereafter belong to or be employed in the office of such accountant general, shall take any other fee or reward on account of any business, matter, or thing whatsoever in or relating to the office of accountant general, or do the duty of any clerk therein, every such person shall be deemed guilty of extortion, and shall and may be prosecuted for the same by indictment or information, or upon complaint thereof made to the said Court of Chancery shall be punished for the same as for a contempt of the said court, and shall forfeit the sum of fifty pounds.
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Lord chancellor, &c. may appoint a broker for sale and purchase of stock.
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57. It shall and may be lawful to and for the lord chancellor of Ireland, or for the lord keeper or commissioners for the custody of the great seal of Ireland for the time being, from time to time at his and their will and pleasure, to appoint a broker or brokers by whom all sales and purchases of stock, with the privity of the accountant general of the said court, shall be made, and to remove such broker at his or their will and pleasure; and such broker shall be entitled to receive the usual commission of brokerage on any such sale and purchase; and whenever such commission or brokerage shall amount to one guinea or any greater sum, then and in any such case such broker shall thereout pay the stamp duty of half a guinea to be charged on the approbation of such sale or purchase by the master approving the same.
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Office of clerk of the reports shall be abolished, and his duty shall be performed by registrar.
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58. All matters and things, which in and by the said herein-before recited Act made in the Parliament of Ireland in the twenty-third and twenty-fourth years of the reign of his late Majesty[1]
are required to be done and performed by the clerk of the reports in the said court, shall be done and performed by the registrar of the said court; anything in the said recited Act, or any law, usage, or custom, to the contrary in anywise notwithstanding.
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120l. a year payable by the Bank of Ireland to the clerk of reports under Irish Act, 36 Geo. 3. c. 1., shall in future be paid into the Exchequer there, and be carried to the consolidated fund.
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59. [Recital of an agreement under which the Bank of Ireland was liable to pay one hundred and twenty pounds a year to the clerk of the reports.] The said yearly sum of one hundred and twenty pounds shall be payable and paid by the Bank of Ireland into the receipt of his Majesty’s Exchequer in Ireland, in the same manner and on the same days and times as the same hath heretofore been payable to the clerk of the reports for the time being; and the same, when so paid, shall be carried to and become part of the consolidated fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
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[Ss. 60–71 rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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Recovery and application of penalties.
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72. All and every penalties and penalty to be incurred and forfeited in pursuance or by virtue of this Act or any of the matters herein contained shall and may be sued for and recovered by any person who will sue for the same, by action or information in any of his Majesty’s courts of record at the Four Courts Dublin, and not elsewhere, and one moiety of every such penalty shall be for the use of his Majesty, and the other moiety thereof to the use of the person or persons who shall sue for the same.
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[Ss. 73, 74, and the Tables of Fees in Schedule, rep. 36 & 37 Vict. c. 91. (S.L.R.)]
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SCHEDULE.[1]
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TABLES to which this Act refers.
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No. 1.—Table of Fees
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Payable to the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, or to the Lord Keeper, or the Commissioner for the Custody of the Great Seal of Ireland.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 2.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Deputy Keeper of the Rolls, the Clerk of the Inrolments, or any Clerk or other Person employed in the Rolls Office in Ireland, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business at the Rolls Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 3.—Table of all the Fees
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Which, it shall be lawful for the Clerks or Examiners of the Masters in the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any other Person employed in the Masters Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Matter or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the said Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 4.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Registrars or Deputy Registrar of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person in their Employment, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Office of Registrar.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 5.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Six Clerks in the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person, employed by them, or any of them, to demand or accept; for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Offices of the said Clerks.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 6.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Examiners in Chief of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed by them or in their Offices respectively, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Examiner’s Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 7.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Usher of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or Deputy Usher, or any Clerk or other Person employed in the Usher’s Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Usher’s Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 8.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Secretary to the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed by such Lord Chancellor, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the said Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 9.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall hereafter he legal to accept in the Office of Clerk of the Custody of Papers in the Court of Chancery in Ireland, in Matters of Idiots and Lunatics.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 10.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Clerk of the Hanaper and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in Ireland, or his Deputy, or any Clerk or other Person employed in the Hanaper or Crown Office, to demand or accept on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the said Offices.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 11.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Cursitor of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed in his Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Cursitor’s Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 12.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Clerk of the Recognizances in the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed in his Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 13.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Registrar and Clerk of the Faculties of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed in his Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Matter or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 14.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Sergeant at Arms of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Deputy or other Person employed by him to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 15.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Pursuivant of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Clerk or other Person employed in his Office, to demand or accept for or on account of any Act, Matter, or Thing done in or concerning the Business of the said Office.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 16.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Pursebearer to the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, or any Person for him, to demand or accept in right or under colour of the said Office of Pursebearer.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 17.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Trainbearer of the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, or any Person for him, to demand or accept in right of the said Office of Trainbearer.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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No. 18.—Table of all the Fees
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Which it shall be lawful for the Cryer of the Court of Chancery in Ireland, or any Person for him, to demand or accept in right of the said Office as Crier.
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. . . . . . . . . .
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[1 Ref. 6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 74. s. 32, as to so much as shall be inconsistent with any of the clauses or provisions of that Act.]
[1 i.e. Irish Act, 23 & 24 Geo. 3. c. 22.]
[1 The offices mentioned in the tables are reffered to in ss. 5, 6, and 7.] |
