The Law Reform Committee was a committee in England and Wales appointed by the Lord Chancellor[1] "to consider, having regard especially to judicial decisions, what changes are desirable in such legal doctrines as the Lord Chancellor may from time to time refer to Committee".[2]
The Lord Chancellor's decision to create this committee was announced on 2 May 1952 by the Attorney General, Lionel Heald, at the dinner of the West Surrey Law Society. The Solicitors Journal said that the proposed step was "overdue".[3] The Committee was appointed on 16 June 1952.[4] In 2006, John Wheeler said that the Committee was "defunct".[5]
Composition edit
Six members of the Committee were judges, two were Queen's Counsel, two were solicitors and the remaining three were professors of law.[5]
Reports edit
| Report | Subject | Command paper | Date | Implementing act |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Occupiers' liability to invitees, licensees and trespassers | Cmd. 9305 | November 1954 | Occupiers' Liability Act 1957.[6] |
| 9th | Liability in tort between husband and wife | Cmnd. 1268 | January 1961 | |
| 11th | Cmnd. 2017 | 1963 | ||
| 12th | Transfer of title to chattels | Cmnd. 2958 | April 1966 | Not implemented by 2006.[5] |
| 13th | Hearsay evidence in civil proceedings | Cmnd. 2964 | May 1966 | |
| 14th | Acquisition of easements and profits by prescription | Cmnd. 3100 | October 1966 | |
| 15th | The Rule in Hollington v. Hewthorn | Cmnd. 3391 | September 1967 | |
| 16th | Privilege in civil proceedings | Cmnd. 3472 | December 1967 | |
| 17th | Evidence of opinion and expert evidence | Cmnd. 4489 | October 1970 | |
| 18th | Conversion and detinue | Cmnd. 4774 | September 1971 | Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 (partial and modified effect).[7] |
| 19th | Interpretation of wills | Cmnd. 5301 | May 1973 | sections 20 and 21 of the Administration of Justice Act 1982.[8] |
| 20th | Interim report on limitation of actions: In personal injury claims | Cmnd. 5630 | May 1974 | |
| 21st | Final report on limitation of actions | Cmnd. 6923 | September 1977 | Limitation Amendment Act 1980.[9] |
| 22nd | The making and revocation of wills | Cmnd. 7902 | May 1980 | section 17 of the Administration of Justice Act 1982.[10] |
| 23rd | The powers and duties of trustees | Cmnd. 8733 | October 1982 | |
| 24th | Latent damage | Cmnd. 9390 | November 1984 | Latent Damage Act 1986.[11] |
See also edit
References edit
Sources edit
- Blair, Michael C. "The Law Reform Committee: The First Thirty Years" (1982) 1 Civil Justice Quarterly 64
- Andrew S Burrows. Clerk & Lindsell on Torts. Sixteenth Edition. Sweet & Maxwell. London. 1989.
- Sir Robert Megarry and Sir William Wade and Charles Harpum and Stuart Bridge and Martin Dixon. The Law of Real Property. Seventh Edition. Sweet & Maxwell. London. 2008.
Citations edit
- ^ The Solicitors Journal. Volume 96. Page 418. Published in No 26 dated 28 June 1952.
- ^ Law Reform Committee. Third Report (Occupiers' Liability to Invitees, Licensees and Trespassers). Cmd 9305. HMSO. London. November 1954. Page 5.
- ^ The Solicitors Journal. Volume 96. Page 285. Published in No 19 dated 10 May 1952.
- ^ Law Reform Committee. Third Report (Occupiers' Liability to Invitees, Licensees and Trespassers). Cmd 9305. HMSO. London. November 1954. Page 5.
- ^ a b c John Wheeler. Essentials of the English Legal System. Pearson Education. 31 December 2006. Page 349 from Google Books.
- ^ Andrew Tettenborn. Clerk & Lindsell on Torts. Sixteenth Edition. Sweet & Maxwell. London. 1989. Paragraph 13-02 at page 708.
- ^ Burrows 1989, Paragraphs 22-08 and 22-09 at page 1224
- ^ Megarry et al. 2008, Note 312 and 316 to paragraph 14-064 at page 580 and note 326 to paragraph 14-067 at page 581.
- ^ Megarry et al. 2008, Note 31 to paragraph 35-003 at page 1412.
- ^ Megarry et al. 2008, Note 72 to paragraph 14-015 at page 559.
- ^ Burrows 1989; Note 49 to paragraph 9-55 at page 418.