The British House of Lords in Its Judicial Capacity. arguments;ti any case. But in actual prac- ¡ tice the lay peers, as distinguished from the legal peers, do not attend, and they never attempt to exercise their constitutional right. The judges who constitute the House of! Lords as a legal tribunal are the Lord Chan cellor, the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (life : peers created for this special purpose), and j any other members of the House of Lords who have held high judicial posts in the past, such as ex-Lord Chancellors and judges of the lower courts who have been raised to the peerage. Three legal peers are neces- ' sarv to form a quorum, and this condition ] would be in no way changed if all the lay peers thought proper to attend at the hear ing of judicial appeals. In practice, however, though not by statute, both the hearing and, the decision are left entirely to the law lords. During the hearing the Lord Chancellor; in his robes comes down from the woolsack and takes a seat along with his legal col leagues on the bench nearest to the bar, on the other side of which is accommodation for about a dozen barristers. Beforo each of • the Lords is placed a small movable table to hold his papers and books of reference. And then the business begins. But it is conduct-! ed in a very different manner from the pro ceedings of which the litigant has had un fortunate 'experience in the "courts below." in the House of Lords there are no flurried witnesses, no excited and anxious "partios." no amusing speeches. The facts are before ' the House in clear print and in compact and > condensed form. The counsel for the appel lant proceeds to argue against the judgment of the lower court in the light of the law as he views it—and sometimes he 'reviews facts, although he is not' 'supposed to do • so. He does not orate, and his 'argument ' takes somewhat the form of debate 'in a cortvtrsational tone. There is frn'riaste, and as | points are raised and cas'e* are' cie'l, the at tendants are engaged in bringing books of
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reference so that the Lords may verify quo tations or refresh their memories. Now and then a peer puts a quiet question which either • throws some new light on the subject or leads to further inquiry. Everything pro ceeds in a calm and dignified manner, and for an example of patient, dispassionate per severance there is no court in the world that can excel the House of Lords sitting as a court of final appeal. When the counsel for the appellant has stated his case, and the counsel 'for the re spondan has, in the same conversational manner, replied; when the Lords have heard both sides of the disputed points in great de tail, and have elicited all the information they require to form a judgment on the legal questions presented for their consideration, then the House adjourns, and the time comes for the suitor to exercise patience, for when a decision will be delivered, no man can say. The Lords require time for deliberation, and the law must not be jostled. At last, however, the appellant hears from his solicitor (attorney) that his case is on the paper for the next clay's business. The House meets at 10.30 A. M. The litigant goes to the palace of Westminster, as the Houses of Parliament are called, 'and finds himself in the lobby, with a small;crowd of other anxious appellants and respondents, whose cases are also down on the 'paper for judgment. Here also are the gentlemen in wigs and gowns, who being professionally engaged may "enter the sacred ) precincts by the big doors, ' while their brethren, ••equally learned in the law, but not at the mo ment professionally engaged, must wait their opportunity like ordinary civilians. ' Assuming that the anxious litigant has ob^.tained entry to hear _w,hat is officially desig nated "consideration" of his case, he will find rhe appearance of the Chamber somewhat different from what if "was during his last visit. The Lord Chancellor is seated on the
