The petition in the Court of Session in early modern Scotland

Finlay, J. (2018) The petition in the Court of Session in early modern Scotland. Parliaments, Estates and Representation, 38(3), pp. 337-349. (doi: 10.1080/02606755.2018.1532976)

Abstract

Petitions to Scotland’s central civil court, the Court of Session, contained common features of style despite being presented for a wide range of purposes. As well as being employed in the course of procedure in a number of litigated cases, the petition was used to obtain entry to an office, or in seeking an equitable remedy which might relieve imminent suffering. In many cases they offer detailed narratives about everyday life, commerce, politics and religion which preserve a great deal that may be of value to the legal and social historian. Some petitioners, such as the poor and vulnerable, enjoyed a privileged status entitling them to have their claims heard summarily. A number of petitions, written by lawyers in order to persuade, contain ideas about liberty, justice and reason reflecting the fact that they were addressed to a court of both law and equity. This contribution identifies the features of such petitions, attempts to classify them, and considers their wider historical significance.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Finlay, Professor John
• Authors: Finlay, J.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Law
• Journal Name: Parliaments, Estates and Representation
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 0260-6755
• ISSN (Online): 1947-248X
• Published Online: 12 October 2018
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2018 International Commission for the History of Representative and Parliamentary Institutions/Commission Internationale pour l’Histoire des Assemblées d’ États
• First Published: First published in Parliaments, Estates and Representation 38(3):337-349
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher