premises wherein she is stated to be interested are described to be in the parish of in the county of Sworn at this in the county of one thousand eight hundred and Note. All alteratons, interlineations, or erasures must have the initials of the judge or registrar set opposite thereto. This affidavit must be made on parchment. SUCCESSION DUTY ACT, 1853. 16 & 17 VICT. CAP. 57. SUCCESSION DUTY ACT, 1853. L. It shall be lawful for any accountable party dissatisfied with the Power for acassessment of the commissioners, upon giving, within twenty-one days after countable party the date of such assessment, notice in writing to the commissioners of his to appeal. intention to appeal against such assessment, and a statement of the grounds Rule, 276, ante, of such appeal, such statement to be furnished within the further period of p. 493. thirty days, to appeal by petition accordingly to her Majesty's Court of Exchequer in England, Scotland, or Ireland, according to the place in which the appellant shall be resident; and every such court, or any judge thereof sitting in chambers, shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine the matter of such appeal and the costs thereof, with power to direct, for the purposes of such appeal, any inquiry, valuation, or report to be made by any officer of the court, or other person, as such court or judge may think fit: provided, that where the sum in dispute in respect of duty on such assessment does not exceed fifty pounds, the accountable party may, having given notice of appeal and delivered a statement of the grounds thereof as herein before directed, appeal to the judge of the county court in England, the sheriff court in Scotland, or the assistant barrister's court in Ireland, for the district, county, or division in which the appellant shall be resident, or the property be situate; and every such judge shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine the matter of such last-mentioned appeal, with the like power and authority as are by this section given to a judge of her Majesty's Court of Exchequer. CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT. CRIMINAL IMPROVEMENT Certain provisions of 23 Geo. 2, c. 11, and 31 Geo. 3 (I.) extended. Any court, judge, justice, &c. may direct a person guilty of perjury in any evidence, &c. to be prosecuted; and commit the party, unless he enter into recognizance to appear and take his trial, and bind persons to give evidence and give certificate of prosecution being directed, which shall be sufficient evidence of the same. 14 & 15 VICT. CAP. 100. An Act for further Improving the Administration of Crimi XIX. Whereas by an act of parliament passed in England in the twentythird year of the reign of his late Majesty King George the Second, intituled "An Act to render Prosecutions for Perjury and Subornation of Perjury more easy and effectual," and by a certain other act of parliament made in Ireland in the thirty-first year of the reign of his late Majesty King George the Third, intituled "An Act to render Prosecutions for Perjury and Subornation of Perjury more easy and effectual, and for affording the Jurisdiction of the Quarter Session in cases of Perjury," certain provisions were made to prevent persons guilty of perjury and subornation of perjury from escaping punishment by reason of the difficulties attending such prosecutions; and whereas it is expedient to amend and extend the same: Be it enacted, that it shall and may be lawful for the judges or judge of any of the superior courts of common law or equity, or for any of her Majesty's justices or commissioners of assize, nisi prius, oyer and terminer, or gaol delivery, or for any justices of the peace, recorder or deputy recorder, chairman or other judge, holding any general or quarter sessions of the peace, or for any commissioner of bankruptcy or insolvency, or for any judge or deputy judge of any county court or any court of record, or for any justices of the peace in special or petty sessions, or for any sheriff or his lawful deputy before whom any writ of inquiry or writ of trial from any of the superior courts shall be executed, in case it shall appear to him or them that any person has been guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury in any evidence given, or in any affidavit, deposition, examination, answer, or other proceeding made or taken before him or them, to direct such person to be prosecuted for such perjury, in case there shall appear to him or them a reasonable cause for such prosecution, and to commit such person so directed to be prosecuted until the next session of oyer and terminer or gaol delivery for the county or other district within which such perjury was committed, unless such person shall enter into a recognizance with one or more sufficient surety or sureties, conditioned for the appearance of such person at such next session of oyer and terminer or gaol delivery, and that he will then surrender and take his trial, and not depart the court without leave, and to require any person he or they may think fit to enter into a recognizance, conditioned to prosecute or give evidence against such person so directed to be prosecuted as aforesaid, and to give to the party so bound to prosecute a certificate of the same being directed; which certificate shall be given without any fee or charge, and shall be deemed sufficient proof of such prosecution having been directed as aforesaid; and upon the production thereof, the costs of such prosecution shall and are hereby required to be allowed by the court before which any person shall be prosecuted or tried in pursuance of such direction as aforesaid, unless such last-mentioned court shall specially otherwise direct, and when allowed by any such court in Ireland such sum as shall be so allowed shall be ordered by the said court to be paid to the prosecutor by the treasurer of the county in which such offence shall be alleged to have been committed, and the same shall be presented for, raised, and levied in the same manner as the expenses of prosecutions for felonies are now presented for, raised, and levied in Ireland: provided always, that no such direction or certificate shall be given in evidence upon any trial to be had against any person upon prosecution so directed as aforesaid. COMPANIES. 25 & 26 VICT. CAP. 89. An Act for the Incorporation and Regulation of Joint [14th July, 1856.] THE COMPANIES ACT, 1862. 126. The commissioners of the court of bankruptcy and the judges of the Special commiscounty courts in England who sit at places more than twenty miles from the sioners for regeneral post office, and the commissioners of bankrupt and the assistant ceiving evidence. barristers and recorders in Ireland, and the sheriffs of counties in Scotland, shall be commissioners for the purpose of taking evidence under this act in cases where any company is wound up in any part of the United Kingdom; and it shall be lawful for such court to refer the whole or any part of the examination of any witnesses under this act to any person hereby appointed commissioner, although such commissioner is out of the jurisdiction of the court that made the order or decree for winding up the company; and every such commissioner shall, in addition to any power of summoning and examining witnesses, and requiring the production or delivery of documents, and certifying or punishing defaults by witnesses, which he might lawfully exercise as a commissioner of the court of bankruptcy, judge of a county court, commissioner of bankrupt, assistant barrister or recorder, or as a sheriff of a county, have in the matter so referred to him all the same powers of summoning and examining witnesses, and requiring the production or delivery of documents and punishing defaults by witnesses and allowing costs and charges and expenses to witnesses, as the court which made the order for winding up the company has; and the examination so taken shall be returned or reported to such last-mentioned court in such manner as it directs. PROBATES AND LETTERS OF ADMINIS 20 & 21 VICT. CAP. 77. PROBATES AND An Act to amend the Law relating to Probates and Letters of Administration in England. [25th August, 1857.] LETTERS OF ADMINISTRA TION. Interpretation of terms. Testamentary jurisdiction to be court of probate. exercised by a I. Commencement of act. II. In the construction of this act, unless the context be inconsistent with the meaning hereby assigned "Will" shall comprehend "testament” and all other testamentary in- "Administration" shall comprehend all letters of administration of the "Common form business" shall mean the business of obtaining probate III. Testamentary jurisdiction of Ecclesiastical and other Courts abolished. IV. The voluntary and contentious jurisdiction and authority in relation to the granting or revoking probate of wills and letters of administration of the effects of deceased persons now vested in or which can be exercised by any court or person in England, together with full authority to hear and determine all questions relating to matters and causes testamentary, shall belong to and be vested in her Majesty, and shall, except as hereinafter is mentioned, be exercised in the name of her Majesty in a court to be called the Court of Probate, and to hold its ordinary sittings and to have its principal registry at such place or places in London or Middlesex as her Majesty in council shall from time to time appoint. V. Power to her Majesty to appoint a judge of the Court of Probate. VI. Judge's tenure of office. VII. Judge before acting to take an oath. VIII. Rank and precedence of judge, who shall appoint a secretary and usher. IX. Salaries of judge, secretary, and usher. X. Judge of Court of Probate to be also judge of the Admiralty Court on the next vacancy. XI. As to increase of salary upon union of the two offices. XII. Retiring pensions of judges. XIII. There shall be established for each of the districts specified in District regisSchedule (A) to this Act, and at the places respectively mentioned in such tries to be estaschedule, a public registry attached to and under the control of the Court of blished as in Schedule (A). Probate, hereinafter referred to as "The District Registry." XIV. Appointment of officers of the Court of Probate. XV. As to appointment of the first officers of the principal registry. XVI. Clerks and officers of Prerogative Court to be transferred to like offices in the Court of Probate. XVII. Existing diocesan registrars to be entitled to be appointed district registrars at the same places. XVIII. As to appointment to offices-salaries of officers. XIX. Tenure of office of officers. XX. Qualification of registrars and district registrars. XXI. Officers of the court to execute their offices in person-registrars, &c. not to act as proctors, &c. XXII. The judge shall cause to be made seals for the Court of Probate; that is to say, one seal to be used in its principal registry, and separate seals to be used in the several district registries, and may cause the same respectively from time to time to be broken, altered and renewed at his discretion; and all probates, letters of administration, orders and other instruments, and exemplifications and copies thereof, respectively, purporting to be sealed with any seal of the Court of Probate, shall in all parts of the united kingdom be received in evidence without further proof thereof. parts Power to judge to cause seals of the court to be provided. England the same powers as the Prerogative Court within the province of Canterbury. XXIII. The Court of Probate shall be a Court of Record, and such court The court to have shall have the same powers, and its grants and orders shall have the same throughout all effect throughout all England, and in relation to the personal estate in all of England of deceased persons, as the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury and its grants and orders respectively now have in the province of Canterbury, or in the parts of such province within its jurisdiction, and in relation to those matters and causes testamentary and those effects of deceased persons which are within the jurisdiction of the said Prerogative Court; and all duties which, by statute or otherwise, are imposed on or should be performed by ordinaries generally, or on or by the said Prerogative Court, in respect of probates, administrations, or matters or causes testamentary within their respective jurisdictions, shall be performed by the Court of Probate: provided that no suits for legacies, or suits for the dis- Suits for legacies tribution of residues, shall be entertained by the court, or by any court or or distribution person whose jurisdiction as to matters and causes testamentary is hereby not to be entertained. abolished. XXIV. The Court of Probate may require the attendance of any party Power to examine in person, or of any person whom it may think fit to examine or cause to be witnesses, 3 A P.N. |