The Gazette 1992

GAZETTE

MARCH 1992

refers you to

Corpus Juris

Humorous

- subtitled - a

Compilation of Humorous,

Extraordinary, Outrageous, Unusual,

Colorful, Infamous, Clever and

Witty Reported Judicial Opinions

and Related Materials Dating From

1256 A.D. to the Present.

The book

was compiled and edited by

John B.

McClay

and

Wendy L. Matthews,

Attorneys-at-Law, Santa Ana,

California, contains 724 pages and

was published in December, 1991.

Corpus Juris Humorous

is a

comprehensive, entertaining volume

containing over 280 hilarious and

authentic judicial opinions extracted

verbatim from the official reports.

Each of the opinions is an original

and unique expression of inspired

judicial wit, creative humour and

literary acumen, which is made all

the more humorous because of its

authenticity, containing genuine

expositions of fact and law, and

reflecting the court's actual analysis

and rulings. The humour appears in

forms as varied as the fact patterns

of the cases presented: incisive wit,

dry sarcasm, obstreperous bombast,

jocular exaggeration, doggerel verse,

philosophic rumination, and more!

The opinions are drawn from a

variety of judicial forums and from

diverse historical and geographic

locales, each having its origin in the

English Common Law tradition,

including the United States, Canada

and England. The cases span a

period of more than 700 years, from

the ancient English transcripts of the

Northumberland County Assize

proceedings of 1256 A.D. to the

present day. The unifying constant in

each of the opinions is the presence

of humour in one form or another,

from the stern " f ront i e r" justice

meted out by Richard C. Barry,

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS AND

THE ISLE OF MAN

Samuel McCleery

Attorney • at - Law and Solicitor ol PO

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Caala Staat Capetown, lata ol Man «wil be pleated to

accept inetuctane ganaraly torn Irian Soldlcra in tie ta-

rnation and admlniatation ot Exempt Turk* and Caicoe

laland Companiaa and Hon - Reaident lale ol Man

Companiaa aa wal aa Treat Admlniakalon

T Office:-

"W: 809 946 2818 Fax: 809 946 2819

I.OMOtfk»:-

1M: 0624 822210 Talax : 628285 Samdan G

Fax: 0624 823799

Justice of the Peace for Hiolumne

County, California, during the

1850-1851 gold rush era (replete with

his notorious mis-spellings,

grammatical anomalies and legally-

questionable "roolings") to the

subtle, articulate wit of Sir Charles

John Darling on the King's Bench

Division of England's Supreme

Court of Judicature; from the

strident, piercing rhetoric of Justice

Michael A . Musmanno (the

infamous "dissenting" judge) of the

Pennsylvania Supreme Court during

the 1950s and 1960s to the Southern-

rural, common-sense humour of

Justice Logan E. Bleckley of the

Georgia Supreme Court during the

1880s and 1890s.

Painstakingly researched and

assembled over the last decade and a

half, these opinions are indeed

" g ems" to be savoured and enjoyed.

The cases are presented in an

accurate and comprehensible form

(with appropriate editing) to enable

the reader to appreciate the fabric of

judicial humour within a meaningful

factual and legal context. The

original language, grammar and

spelling in the opinions have all been

retained, notwithstanding any

lexicographic improprieties; and in

many of the older cases, the

grammatical errors and arcane

usages constitute an integral part of

the humour of the writing.

Corpus Juris Humorous

has been

well received by the legal community

in the United States and will appeal

to many judges and lawyers. The

price is $28.95 (which includes tax,

shipping and handling). The book is

available from MAC-MAT, P.O. Box

2025 - 131, Histin, California

92680, U.S.A.

Eamonn G. Hall

English Agents:

Agency work

undertaken for Irish solicitors in

both litigation and non-

contentious matters - including

legal aid. Fearon & Co.,

Solicitors, 12 The Broadway,

Woking, Surrey GU21 5AU.

Tel: 03-0483-726272.

Fax: 03-0483-725807.

Practice Notes

(Continued from page 97)

they owe a duty of care to a

consenting spouse to advise on the

general wisdom of appointing the

agent which is something that would

need to be carefully considered in any

case. It is really no different from

appointing any agent under a Power

of Attorney to execute a deed and it

is obviously a particular type of

agency that should not be given

lightly.

People sometimes believe that an

agent acting on foot of a Power of

Attorney who clearly has power to

execute the consent can also complete

a declaration to verify the facts

regarding a marriage etc. under the

Family Home Protection Act. Such

evidence would be worthless being

hearsay. An agent cannot give

evidence on behalf of another either

in court or by way of declaration.

The agent could only execute the

declaration if he is doing so of his or

her own knowledge and in such event

is not doing so on foot of the Power

of Attorney.

Conveyancing Committee

Settlement Negotiations with

Insurance Companies

Practitioners should note the ruling of

the Bar Council which precludes their

members from negotiating directly

with insurance company

representatives in personal injury

claims.

Where plaintiffs' solicitors arrange

meetings with insurance companies,

for the purpose of discussing

settlement of personal injury claims,

they should, where they intend

briefing counsel, ensure that there is a

solicitor instructed by the defendant.

If a solicitor has not been instructed

by the defendant this will lead to a

situation where the barrister, acting

on behalf of the plaintiff, will be

precluded from negotiating on behalf

of the plaintiff with an insurance

company representative.

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