Abstract
A number of initiatives for reforms to improve and cheapen legal procedures were made by the West Riding court of quarter sessions through three petitions to the House of Commons and by the lobbying of members of Parliament between 1729 and 1731. In a national context, the most important consequences of these were Acts of 1729 and 1731, the first of which led to the formalisation of qualification for attorneys and solicitors and the second, well known to both archivists and archive users, finally established the practice of using English in the written proceedings of all courts of law. The third Act reduced the possibility for successful appeals from quarter sessions through either disputes over correct form or the use of writs of certiorari. It is likely that these means were taken to reform legal procedures for the benefit of the numerous small clothiers in the West Riding who were suffering financially from a trade depression in the later 1720s.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Archives: The Journal of the British Records Association
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
