Present State of the Law, The Speech of Henry Brougham, Esq MP...
Brougham's Great Speech on Law Reform Brougham, Henry [1778-1868]. Present State of the Law. The Speech of Henry Brougham, Esq. M.P., In the House of Commons, On Thursday, February 7, 1828, On His Motion, That an Humble Address be Presented to His Majesty, Praying that He Will Graciously be Pleased to Issue a Commission for Inquiring into the Defects Occasioned by Time and Otherwise in the Laws of this Realm, And into the Measures Necessary for Removing the Same. London: Henry Colburn, 1828. [iii]-xii, 125, [3] pp. Lacking half-title. Octavo (8-1/2" x 5-1/2"). Disbound stab-stitched pamphlet. Moderate toning, light soiling to exterior, light foxing to a few leaves, small library stamp to title page and p. 99. $175. * First edition. Delivered before the House of Commons, the Present State of the Law is widely considered to be Brougham's greatest speech and the most important statement about law reform in Great Britain. As Holdsworth notes, it "was the most learned and thorough criticism of the many defects of the common law that had ever been made since the Commonwealth period." Advised by Bentham, though not mentioned by name in the speech, Brougham spoke for nearly six hours and held his audience to the end. Two Royal commissions, one on the common law and one on real property, followed in 1828. Brougham was appointed chancellor in 1830. These actions initiated the period of legal reform that took place over the following decades. Holdsworth, A History of English Law XIII:306. Sweet & Maxwell, A Legal Bibliography of the British Commonwealth 2:45.
Price: $175.00
Book number 75968