Recent Legal Literature

Right Honourable Earl of halsbury: The Laws of England, Being a Complete Statement of the Whole Law of England; Dooling: Equitable Remedies of Creditors in Michigan; Train: True Stories of Crime from the District Attorney\u27s Office

Grantor\u27s Remedy on Breach of Condition Subsequent

In Mash v. Bloom (I9O7), - Wis. -, 114 N. W. Rep. 457, the court holds (Siebecker and Timlin, JJ., dissenting) that one, having conveyed real property subject to a condition subsequent, has no right of action to recover possession on breach of the condition until he has taken advantage of condition broken and so notified the defendant, either by demand of possession or some other act equivalent to a re-entry for condition broken

Torrens Acts\u27: Some Comparisons

The widespread discussion during the last ten years of the general scheme of registration of title to land, popularly known as the Torrens System, has served to satisfy most disinterested lawyers and laymen of the general merits of the system. Consideration of the matter has been confined to no one section of the country, but has extended from Maine to California, and from Oregon to Texas. The result has been that laws embodying the general principles of the system have been enacted in six states, and proposed laws are before the legislatures of several others. The fact, however, that some of the earlier acts were declared invalid, and that some of the later acts have been referred to by the courts as unskillfully drawn, or crude

Conveyancing in the Law Department

There was a time when the young man studied law in the private office of some successful practicing lawyer. Much time was spent by the student in copying legal papers the real meaning of which was seldom understood and seldom explained. Fundamental legal principles were but little considered. Only under the most exceptional circumstances was this method educational. There was little, if any, systematic and orderly study of law as a science. That young men, after serving such an apprenticeship, ever became good lawyers was rather in spite of this manner of training them than because of it. As the variety of subjects dealt with by practicing lawyers multiplied, each lawyer became more and more a specialist, confining his attention to but few of these subjects. The partial view of legal principles obtained by the so-called students in his office became still more partial and restricted

Invalid Contracts for Contingent Fees

It is not unusual that agreements between attorneys and clients providing for contingent fees contain a stipulation to the effect that no settlement of the controversy concerning which there is a bargain for fees shall be made by the client without the attorney\u27s consent. In the recent case of Davy et at. v. Fidelity and Casualty Ins. Co., 85 N. E. 504, the Supreme Court of Ohio condemns such an agreement as champertous and, by the citation of many Ohio decisions, demonstrates that this court has always maintained a consistent and unambiguous attitude in regard to contracts of the kind which we have in this case. The court holds that the illegal stipulation renders the whole contract illegal and indivisible, and that the illegal stipulation cannot be ignored and the other provisions of the contract enforced

One Way to Prevent Some of the \u27Law\u27s Delays\u27

In view of discussions concerning The Law\u27s Delays which have been had before several Bar Association meetings lately, the case of In re McHugh, 116 N. W. 459, decided by the Supreme Court of Michigan, is of interest. In this case two attorneys had been summoned by the trial court to answer a charge of contempt in failing to appear in court on the day set for the trial of one accused of murder whose defense they had undertaken, their failure to appear being alleged to be for the purpose of obstructing the course of justice. After a hearing they were found guilty of contempt and each was fined two hundred and fifty dollars, one of them being sentenced, in addition, to imprisonment for thirty days. The Supreme Court affirmed the contempt proceedings of the trial court

The Federal Constitution is Not Violated by a State Law Compelling One Accused of Crime to Testify Against Himself

A case has been recently decided by the Supreme Court of Colorado, upon a condition of facts which it seems, has not an exact parallel in any of the reports. After being in litigation for more than eleven years the question involved was finally settled by the court of last resort of that state. In effect the decision goes to the extent of saying, that when a note is endorsed specially and afterwards comes back to the party making such special endorsement, and the party reissues the same without striking out his endorsement, no new endorsement is necessary, since the special feature is obliterated by the reissue. In legal effect it is considered as a general endorsement or an endorsement in blank

The Torrens Acts : Some Comparisons

The widespread discussion during the last ten years of the general scheme of registration of title to land, popularly known as the Torrens System, has served to satisfy most disinterested lawyers and laymen of the general merits of the system. Consideration of the matter has been confined to no one section of the country, but has extended from Maine to California, and from Oregon to Texas. The result has been that laws embodying the general principles of the system have been enacted in six states, and proposed laws are before the legislatures of several others. The fact, however, that some of the earlier acts were declared invalid, and that some of the later acts have been referred to by the courts as unskillfully drawn, or crude, and the further facts that, although the California Act of 1897 has never, apparently, been in practical operation, while, on the other hand, the Illinois act of the same year has been, and the later acts of Massachusetts and Minnesota have been growing in favor, indicate that it may not be inappropriate, in view of proposed legislation, to compare the laws with each other on some points, even at this late day.

The Federal Constitution is Not Violated by a State Law Compelling One Accused of Crime to Testify Against Himself

A case has been recently decided by the Supreme Court of Colorado, upon a condition of facts which it seems, has not an exact parallel in any of the reports. After being in litigation for more than eleven years the question involved was finally settled by the court of last resort of that state. In effect the decision goes to the extent of saying, that when a note is endorsed specially and afterwards comes back to the party making such special endorsement, and the party reissues the same without striking out his endorsement, no new endorsement is necessary, since the special feature is obliterated by the reissue. In legal effect it is considered as a general endorsement or an endorsement in blank

A Comparison of Some Methods of Conciliation and Arbitration of Industrial Disputes

In these times when we see combinations of employers co-operating under trade agreements with combinations of employees to conduct immense industries, we are apt to forget the remarkable development of ideas concerning industrial economy that has occurred within a life-time. It was only eighty years ago that the merchants of Boston met to discountenance and check what were then regarded as unlawful combinations of workmen formed to protest against the long work day, low wages, and oppressive rules of their masters. The sum of $20,000 was raised at this meeting of merchants and ship owners to fight the movement for a ten hour day. Such men as Wendell PHILLIPS, Horace MANN, and Robert RANTOUL espoused the journeymen\u27s cause. The right of workmen to combine for exactly these purposes, then considered by many as unlawful, has long since been recognized. Now we see in the industrial field managers of millions of money meeting periodically the representatives of thousands of workmen in their respective industries, and forming, after conference and debate, agreements for the continuance of the industry. A comparatively new term-- Collective Bargaining --aptly defines what then takes place