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g a z e t t e
a p r i l 1982
BOOK REVIEW
Odgers' Principles of Pleading and Practice in Civil
Actions in the High Court of Justice.
Twenty-second Edition. London, Stevens & Sons, 1981
(lix, 565p.) Price £13.50 Sterling.
The principal objects of pleading are to define the issues of
fact and questions of law to be decided between the parties; to
provide each of them with distinct notice of the case intended
to be established by the other and to set out a brief summary of
the case of each party. Thereby neither litigant is taken by
surprise at the trial and a permanent record becomes available
relating to the nature of the claim and defence, and the
questions raised and issues decided, so as to prevent future
litigation upon matters already determined.
While pleadings are closely related to practice and
procedure the art of the pleader is that of the essayist or
concise reporter whereas the craft of procedure is that of
diagnosis and treatment whereby the matters at issue are
jolated and brought before the Court. The former permits of a
certain degree of imagination and style whereas the latter is
decidedly pragmatic.
The present edition of this well-known legal volume is
published ninety years after the first appearance of the book in
1981. It comes at a time of rapid and far-reaching changes in
the law of civil procedure in England where the past few years
have produced more innovation and reform than at any time
since the Indicature Acts of the last century. Consequently the
basic text has been extensively revised and much newmaterial
has been incorporated by its editors D. B. Casson and I. H.
Dennis.
While Irish students and lawyers would be well advised to
learn or apply these subjects from a suitable edition of Bullen
& Leake's
Precedents of Pleadings
and from the Rules of the
Superior Courts 1962, as amended, nevertheless this textbook
is invaluable for those who are interested in the history ofcourt
procedure and in discovering the reason why the rules of both
leading and practice have evolved at common law over the
~enturies until they have reached the form in which we know
them today.
Rules of Court have never been regarded as ornaments of
legal literature. The nature of their function is so basic that
they may be looked upon as the foundations and walls of the
legal edifice or as lines of communication that carry the
system until the final execution of the judgement.
It is, accordingly, all the more credit to the editors that they
have produced a volume which is not merely readable and
complete but to the student or lawyer, with some knowledge at
least of the subject, the text has the charm of clarity in which
the history and the principles are set out without confusion and
in which the editors appear to be at your shoulder telling you
what to do and what not to do as you ponder over a procedural
problem in a case. Bearing in mind that certain statutory and
historical differences do exist between the Rules of Court in
England and Wales and those in Ireland nevertheless
interested Irish readers willfindthis a delightful book in which
the subject is treated with such humanity and understanding
that the static character of adjectival law acquires a certain
movement such as the Impressionists gave to the still-life art of
France a century ago.
There are ample footnotes relating to the leading cases on
the subject. In addition the volume contains a table of cases
and statutes while those rules which are ofparticular interest to
students are treated in detail in an appendix to the text. •
GERARD A. LEE
Books received
The following titles have been received:-
C.I.P.A. Guide to The Patents Act, 1977.
(3 rd
Cumulative supplement up to date to September, 1981) by
Chartered Institute of Patent Agents. London. Sweet &
Maxwell, 1982. Price: £10.75 Sterling.
Companies Act, 1981.
Current Law Statutes Reprints,
London. Sweet & Maxwell, 1982. Price £7.75 Sterling.
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vessel disease, blindness, mental handicap, birth
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