bill of Middlesex. Hist. A process by which the Court of the King’s Bench in Middlesex obtains jurisdiction over a defendant who resides in a county outside the Court’s jurisdiction, by alleging a fictitious trespass in a county over which the court has jurisdiction. • Once the sheriff returns the bill noting that the defendant […]
Hist. A process by which the Court of the King’s Bench in Middlesex obtains jurisdiction over a defendant who resides in a county outside the Court’s jurisdiction, by alleging a fictitious trespass in a county over which the court has jurisdiction. • Once the sheriff returns the bill noting that the defendant is not in
bill of Middlesex (英格兰古法)米德尔塞克斯令 早期王座法庭〔King’s Bench〕获取普通民事案件管辖权所使用的令状。王座法庭起初只对刑事案件及涉及国王利益的案件有管辖权，为获取对普通民事案件的管辖权——原为民诉法庭享有，它设计了一个拟制：原告先以侵权罪之名起诉被告，这样王座法庭便获取了管辖权，因为早期的侵权行为被视为犯罪。首先王座法庭要向它所在郡之郡长，即米德尔塞克斯郡郡长，发出米德尔塞克斯令逮捕被告，因被告一旦被押，则王座法庭便可开始提起对他的任何诉讼，这样王座法庭便获取了普通民事诉讼的管辖权。但被告并不总是在米郡，于是米郡郡长向王座法庭法官作拘押未果的回呈〔return of non est inventus〕，法官便再向被告所在郡之郡长签发潜逃令〔writ of latitat〕，令中重复了米德尔塞克斯令及回呈的内容，并责令他拘押被告，以便开始起初的真正的民事诉讼。实际上，若被告在外地则米德尔塞克斯令不签发，而只是直接签发潜逃令，于是潜逃令逐渐被视为米德尔塞克斯令了。该程序于1832年被废止，1833年后所有在高级法院的对人诉讼都由传唤令〔writ of summons〕开始。