Nisi - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: nisi Page: 4Discharge
Discharge, to relieve of a duty. A sheriff is said to be discharged of his prisoner; a prisoner discharged from custody; a jury discharged from the cause. See next title.A rule nisi is discharged when the Court decides that it shall not be made absolute, i.e., that the party who obtained the rule nisi should take nothing, and the suit remain in statu quo. See RULE.In a warrant case instituted otherwise than on a police report, 'discharge' or 'acquittal' of accused are distinct concepts applicable to different stages of the proceedings in Court. The legal effect and incidents of 'discharge' and 'acquittal' are also different. An order of discharge in a warrant case instituted on complaint, can be made only after the process has been issued and before the charge is framed. S. 253(1) shows that as a general rule there can be no order of discharge unless the evidence of all the prosecution witnesses has been taken and the Magistrate considers for reasons to be recorded, in the light of the...
Pares
Pares, a person's peers or equals; as the jury for trial of causes, who were originally the vassals or tenants of the lord, being the equals or peers of the parties litigant. Magna Charta (see that title) provides against the condemnation of a freeman nisi per legale judicium parium suorum, vel per legem terr'....
Letter-missive
Letter-missive. When a peer was made a defendant in the Court of Chancery, the Lord Chancellor sent a letter-missive to him, to request his appearance, together with a copy of the bill, petition, and order; if he neglected to appear to this, he was then served with a copy of the bill and a citation to appear and answer; if he continued still in contempt, a sequestration nisi, which was made absolute in the usual way, issued immediately against his lands and goods, without any of the arresting processes of attachment, etc., which cannot affect a Lord of Parliament. See 1 Dan. Ch. Pr.Also, for electing a bishop, a letter-missive from the sovereign is sent to the dean and chapter, containing the name of the person whom he would have them elect. See CONGE D'ELIRE....
King's proctor
King's proctor, the proctor or solicitor representing the Crown in the Probate and Divorce Court. In proper cases it is his duty to intervene in petitions for dissolution or for declaration of nullity of marriage to defeat collusion or the suppression of material facts. In his official capacity he cannot intervene to show cause against a decree nisi for dissolution of marriage being made absolute without the leave of the Court, Gray v. Gray, (1861) 30 LJP&M 96. In the case of an unsuccessful intervention the King's Proctor may be condemned in costs, Carter v. Carter, 1910 P. 151. See (English) Judicature Act, 1925, s. 181....
Magna Carta
Magna Carta, [Latin 'great charter'] The English charter that King John granted to the barons in 1215 and Henry III and Edward I later confirmed. It is generally regarded as one of the great common-law documents and as the foundation of constitution liberties. The other three great charters of English Liberty are the Petition of Right (3 Car. (1628)), the Habeas Corpus Act (31 Car. 2 (1679)), and the Bill of Rights (1 Will. SM. (1689)). Also spelled Magna charta, Black's Law Dictionary, 7th Edn., p. 963.This Great Charter is based substantially upon the Saxon Common Law, which flourished in this kingdom until the Normaninvasion consolidated the system of feudality, still the great characteristic of the principles of real property. The barons assembled at St.Edmund's Bury, in Suffolk, in the later part of the year 1214, and there solemnly swore upon the high alter to withdraw their allegiance from the Crown, and openly rebel, unless King John confirmed by a formal charter the ancient li...
Marriage, Promise of
Marriage, Promise of, need not be in writing, although an 'agreement in consideration of marriage' must be, by s. 4 of the Statute of Frauds. So it was decided, overruling an earlier decision to the contrary, about 200 years ago, and the question does not appear to have been raised since 1717. In early times the spiritual courts enforced specific performance of the promise, and this jurisdiction was not formally abolished until the reign of George II., by 26 Geo. 2, c. 33. In an action for the breach of the promise, the parties were excepted amongst others) from the general abolition of admissibility of parties as witnesses under the Evidence Act,1851, but this exception was removed by the Evidence Further Amendment Act, 1869, under which, however, the plaintiff may not 'recover a verdict' unless his or her testimony be corroborated by some other material evidence in support of such promise. The mere non-answering of a letter is not, however, sufficient corroboration, Wiedman v. Walpol...
Mens rea
Mens rea, a guilty mind. See ACTUS NON FACIT REUM, NISI MENS SIT REA. Although prima facie and as a general rule there must be a mind at fault before there can be a crime, it is not an inflexible rule, and a statute may relate to such a subject-matter and may be so framed as to make an act criminal, whether there has been any intention to break the law or otherwise to do wrong or not. There is a large body of municipal law at the present day which is so conceived. Bye-laws are constantly made regulating the width of thoroughfares, the height of buildings, the thickness of walls and a variety of other matters necessary for the general welfare, health or commerce, and such bye-laws are enforced by the sanctions of penalties; the breach of them constitutes an offence and is a criminal matter.... and in such a case the substance of the enactment is that a man shall take care that the statutory direction is obeyed and that if he fails to do so he does so at his peril--WILLS, J., R. v. Tolso...
O. Ni
O. Ni. It was the course of the Exchequer, as soon as a sheriff or escheat or entered into his account for issues, amerciaments, etc., to mark upon his head O. Ni which denoted oneratur, nisi habeat sufficiente exonerationem, and presently he became the king's debtor, and a debet was set upon his head; where-upon the parties paravaile became debtors to the sheriff or escheator, and discharged against the king, 4 Inst. 116....
Sittingsin banc
Sittingsin banc, sittings of the judges on the benches of their respective courts at Westminster, at which they decided matters of law and transacted other judicial business, as distinguished from Nisi Prius sittings, at which matters of fat were tried. See DIVISIONAL COURT...
Placita
Placita, the public assemblies of all degrees of men where the sovereign presided, who usually con-sulted upon the great affairs of the kingdom. Also, pleas, pleadings, or debates, and trials at law; sometimes penalties, fines, mulcts, or emendations; also, the style of the Court at the beginning of the record at nisi prius; but this is now omitted. See Jac. Law Dict....
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