TO THE PROFESSION. AFTER ER fucceffive interruptions and difappointments for eighteen months, fince this work was firft announced, I am now able to prefent to the Profeffion the First Volume of my SYSTEM OF PLEADING in Octavo, which, pursuing my favourite plan, contains ABATEMENT, ACCOUNT, and part of ASSUMPSIT; together with the particular ANALYSIS of the Pleas in Abatement and of the Action of Account, as I intend at the end of every complete Head or Heads, when completed in each fucceeding volume. Thefe I name the HEADS, or LEADING TITLES; for the Heads of Proceedings by and against Attornies, &c. are fubdivifions arifing out of the General Heads. THE next Head in the plan, namely, ANNUITY, may feem to be an exception; but this Head, by reference to the INDEX, will be obferved to be poftponed to the Pleadings under the Head Writ of Annuity-Proceedings in, in order to connect the old Proceedings, fuch as Writ of Annuity, Writ of Right, &c.: Yet ANNUITY will preferve its former place if it follows Perfonal and Mixed Actions, and immediately precede Writs of Right, &c. which are Real Actions, without injury to the ANALYSIS. In the Pleas of ABATEMENT, confidering it a very important Plca, I have thought proper to give the utmost variety, notwithstanding I know there are A 2 many 12084 many in the Books; I mean the Ancient Entries chiefly: for I have not found so many in Books of Precedents of later date. And if the finifhed Pleader and experienced Profeffor fhould think the Forms too fimilar or multifarious, ftill, by narrowly infpecting them, differences will be difcovered in each both ufeful and inftructive to the unexperienced Practitioner. Keeping in view the practical ufe of my Work, I have promifed and do mean to give the greateft poffible variety of Precedents and Forms in Pleadings. IN ACCOUNT I have given few Forms of Pleadings, neceffarily from the difufe of this (though a moft beneficial) Action: there are, however, more in the present volume than in any other Book extant, with complete references to all the Modern and Ancient Entries. BUT on the more important Action of ASSUMPSIT, in every day's conftant use, I have beftowed more pains at leaft than any other Gentleman in practice in the Profeffion has leifure to do. And I wish it to be confidered, that without attending to the diftinctions between Affumpfit General and Special, I have adopted a mode which I think the most useful; that is, throughout this Action I have claffed fuch as I think bear a relation to each other for inftance, in the Second Volume, in AfSumpfit-Special Contracts, refpecting real property, by and against Landlord and Tenant, I have taken care to give the Precedents immediately afterwards on Contracts relating to Perfonal property, namely, the Sale, Affignment, Demife, &c. of Lands, ioufes, &c. because they have relation to each other; and fo in like manner on Contracts relating to Sale, &c. Carriage and Conveyance of Goods, &c. I have given thofe against Carriers by Land and Water, &c. &c. as they refpect the doctrine of Bailments, &c.; an arrange arrangement which I have ftudioufly adopted, that the Student and Pleader may with his eye immediately catch the fubject and form together. In the alphabetical manner in which the majority of Pleaders arrange their Pleadings, I have feldom feen this analytical order relating to the Subject. THIS order, however, may not feem to be obferved in the Divifion preceding, viz. Affumpfit General: but I have adopted what I cannot help thinking a more truly ufeful mode there. For inftance, in Actions by and against particular Perfons, the moft general fubdivifion of that DIVISION on the right page of the fheet, I have conftantly led the eye at the top to the fubject-matter or title (if I may call it fo) of the PRECEDENT, THE reason why I have not critically diftinguifhed the Precedents in Indebitatus Affumpfit from iffumpfit Special, is, because I do not think it fo well defined or determined in the Books; but chiefly, because I think my method 'the most natural and eafy for the Profeffor and the Student. I will give one inftance: In my Work, under this Head, it is folemnly determined that ASSUMPSIT will not lie for a legacy, which if it did, would be Indebitatus Affumpfit; but Affumpfit Special will lie on the promise by the Executor; and yet the Precedents are in the fame form. I have given two Forms with the leading Cafes, and referred to the very able Arguments of Mr. Juftice BULLER and my Lord KENYON. The Profeffion will beft judge of the usefulness of them, I HAVE, however, violated the method in one inftance, namely, Policies of Affurance, which are Contracts of Indemnity, and would more naturally fall under that fubdivifion; but, never departing from real utility for a faftidi ous adherence to ftrictnefs of method, I have purpofely THERE are fome Precedents that are not strictly rcdu- cible to any of thofe Heads which I have confidered most useful as fubdivifions, and where I have not been NEXT follow the Pleas, Replications, &c. in AssUMP- SIT. The fubdivifions arifing out of this Head, namely, Proceedings by and against Particular Perfons-Attornies, by and against, in every species of Action ;-Baron and Feme,-Executors and Adminiftrators, &c. &c. ;-Forms of beginning and ending every Declaration or Plea ;-the Judgment in Abatement,-Account-Affumpfit, and in every other Action; all follow in their proper place and natu- ral order, either in the body of the Work, if they form a diftinct Precedent, however minute, or in the INDEX. For example, for the beginning and ending of a Plea in ABATEMENT, (which indeed form the Plea itself), fee FORMS. In like manner, for beginnings and endings of These and other practical directions I may occafionally THE Common Declarations in Indebitatus Affumpfit, and the common Counts, are fo familiar to every Attor- ney's Clerk, and fo cafy to be found in every book of practice, that I had contented myself with referring to them in the INDEX, as they are to be found difperfedly throughout ASSUMPSIT: however, after having put my Work to the prefs, at the inftance of many of my younger friends in the Profeffion, I have given at the end of ASSUMPSIT one complete Form of every common Decla- ration on all the common Counts. And therefore here I cannot too frequently and too earneftly requeft the Student's attention to the INDEX. Here the difficulty which has been and will be previously regarded as to the facility of turning to Precedents and Forms in the body of the Work, vanishes. Here every Precedent and every Form is fo diftributed, firft by the ANALYSIS, and then by the references FOLLOWING EACH feparate Head, as to leave it impoffible for a perfon of the plaineft intel- lect not to find what he wants: All fall into their ftrictly natural place, and make this hitherto difficult doctrine of Pleading capable of an eafy comprehenfion, as well as prepare the pupil to read his Law Books, especially in this branch of that science-to digeft his reading, and improve his faculties. I HAVE taken all the Books of Practice of Modern Times, with the Reporters, and have chronologically Indexed all the Forms and Precedents whenever they have occurred in them: Thefe, with my own work, form the Modern Part of my INDEX. I have next taken the Modern Entries, with CORNWALL and TOWNSHEND'S Tables, and thrown the antique mafs into my own |
