- Record series in the index: NRS 2659
- Entries in the index: 2,800+
About the Court of Civil Jurisdiction
The Court of Civil Jurisdiction was composed of the Judge-Advocate and two "fit and proper" residents of the Colony, appointed by the Governor (or, in his absence, by the Lieutenant Governor). The Court held a general civil jurisdiction to be exercised in a summary way over all pleas concerning lands, Houses, tenements and hereditaments, and all matters of interest. The Court also heard pleas of debt, account or other contracts, trespasses, and all related interests plus any personal pleas. The Court was also empowered to grant probate on wills and issue letters of administration for the personal estates of intestates dying within the settlement. This meant that the Court was granted jurisdiction over every form of civil action, and that no distinction was made between law and equity.
A note about the index
From 1810 the Minutes of proceedings of each case were given a running number within each volume. Where a case was heard on several different days, perhaps covering a number of months or even years, the minutes of each hearing were allocated different numbers.
The index covers the years 1799-1814. The first volume [2/8150], which starts in 1799, has been partially indexed.
The relevant case papers for the period 1800-1809 may be found in NRS 2656 and for the period 1810-14 in NRS 2657.
This partial index to the Court of Civil Jurisdiction - Minutes of Proceedings was prepared by Professor Bruce Kercher of Macquarie University, when he was undertaking his doctoral research. State Records acknowledges and thanks Dr Kercher for his generous donation of the index and for allowing us to include it on the website.
Further reading
Macquarie Law Division Website - Decisions of the Superior Courts of New South Wales 1788-1899
At present the Macquarie University website includes a number of transcriptions concentrating on the decisions of the Supreme Courts and other courts of unlimited jurisdiction between 1788 and 1841. The site is presently under construction and new cases will be added over time.