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[DILLON, John]. - The Decision of the Three Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, pronounced seriatim Monday, 11th of April, 1836, on the Applicability of the Marriage Act of England to this Colony; with a report of the case, and a review of the arguments.

Title: The Decision of the Three Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, pronounced seriatim Monday, 11th of April, 1836, on the Applicability of the Marriage Act of England to this Colony; with a report of the case, and a review of the arguments.
Description: Sydney, printed by William Jones 1836. Octavo unbound as issued (an early if not original strip of paper down the spine); [2],40pp (last blank), [1] (blank). Title and last blank quite dusty. Inscribed and signed by Dillon - then a solicitor to the Supreme Court - to John Gurner who arrived in Sydney in 1817 as Barron Field's clerk, became the chief clerk, and later a commissioner of the Supreme Court. ¶ Rare and one of the earliest authoritive attacks on legal judgments published in the colony - and worthy of notice as the case hinged upon the concept of legal independence from Great Britain. Ferguson (2116) appends an uncommonly long note indicating that he at least found it of interest ("important case" are his words). A John Maloney was convicted of bigamy but made representation that as he had first married after, and not in accordance with, the passing of the Marriage Act then his first marriage was invalid. The Chief Justice (Forbes) and Justice Dowling determined the Marriage Act had no application in New South Wales and found him guilty; Justice Burton disagreed as does Dillon in this pamphlet. He has found himself unable to merely report the case without comment as this decision now left the colony with "no law prevailing here as to marriage". Ferguson found three copies including his own and since then only one more copy seems to have found its way to an Australian library.

Keywords: law social sciences history c19th Australia marriage bigamy

Price: AUD 600.00 = appr. US$ 415.12 Seller: Richard Neylon, Bookseller
- Book number: 7558