Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836 Explained

Short Title:Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836[1]
Type:Act
Parliament:Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long Title:An Act for separating the Palatine Jurisdiction of the County Palatine of Durham for the Bishoprick of Durham.
Year:1836
Citation:6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 19
Royal Assent:21 June 1836
Commencement:5 July 1836, except as otherwise provided for.[2]
Repealing Legislation:Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1976
Status:repealed
Original Text:https://books.google.com/books?id=rqwuAAAAIAAJ&dq=editions%3Au9hJKEhmki4C&pg=PA130

The Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836[1] (6 & 7 Will. 4. c. 19) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It abolished the temporal authority of the Bishop of Durham within the County Palatine of Durham, placing the county under lay administration. Previously, since 1075, the so-called prince-bishops had substantial powers as earls "with the right to raise an army, mint his own coins, and levy taxes".[3] [4]

It also disbanded the Court of the County of Durham, appointing the High Sheriff as judge of a regular county court.[5] Doubts about the construction of this act led to the enactment of the Durham County Palatine Act 1858 (21 & 22 Vict. c. 45).[6]

Repeal

In a report dated 28 October 1975, the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission said that the unrepealed residue of this act was spent because of the abolition of the Court of Chancery of the County Palatine of Durham and Sadberge. They recommended that the whole act be repealed.[7] The Act was repealed by Part I of Schedule 1 to the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1976.

Section 1 – The Palatine Jurisdiction of the Bishop of Durham to be separated from the Bishopric and vested in the Crown

The words from "and all forfeitures" to "in right of the same" in this section were repealed by section 9(2) of, and part I of the third schedule to, the Crown Estate Act 1961.

The proviso to this section was repealed by section 56 of, and schedule 11 to, the Courts Act 1971. The repeal was consequential on the abolition of the Court of Chancery of the County Palatine of Durham and Sadberge by section 41 of that act.

Section 2 – County court to cease

This section abolished the Court of the County of Durham and the office of the clerk of that court.

Section 7 – Extent of the words "County of Durham"

This section enacted:

This definition is referred to in section 1 of the Durham County Palatine Act 1858.

Section 9 – Reservation of rights to the Bishopric

This section was repealed by section 9(2) of, and part I of the third schedule to, the Crown Estate Act 1961.

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. The citation of this act by this short title was authorised by the Short Titles Act 1896, section 1 and the first schedule. Due to the repeal of those provisions it is now authorised by section 19(2) of the Interpretation Act 1978.
  2. The Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836, section 8
  3. Web site: The Prince Bishops of Durham . 11 July 2011 . Durham World Heritage Site . 5 November 2019 . 28 October 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191028135837/https://www.durhamworldheritagesite.com/history/prince-bishops . live .
  4. Book: 1836 . The Statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Bishop of Durham Temporal Powers by Palatine Act 1836 . His Majesty's Statute and Law Printers. 130.
  5. The Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836, section 2
  6. The Durham County Palatine Act 1858, preamble
  7. The Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission. Statute Law Revision: Seventh Report. Law Com 70. SLC 40. Cmnd 6303. Pages 5 and 33.