Manuscripta juridica

Decisiones curiae supremae Scotiae - Practicks 1550-1577: (1550/12/7 - 1577/7/4) .

No title. Written in several different colours of ink, and probably by several scribes, but still on the same type of paper. As in the preceding practicks by Sinclair, interesting text passages are again marked by crosses or asterisks, in pencil. The layout of the first leaves also resembles the one in Sinclair's Practicks. The text of many items is much more detailed than in the Orr MS edited by R. Sutherland. The items are numbered, and headings are written above the items.

At the beginning, chronological arrangement parallel to R. Sutherland's edition, from 1550/12/7 to 1569/2/3 (nr. 313 here, on fol. 55v, corresponds to MS Orr nr. 312). The present MS then inserts two items: 314 Elias Spens v. James Clapane of Halcarny, and 315 Alexander Maxtine of St. Johnston v. a jury of inquest. Item 316 here corresponds to MS Orr nr. 313. The subsequent items Orr 313-315 are here lacking. Therefore items nr. 317-320 correspond to MS Orr nr. 317-320. Yet, items Orr 321-324 are again lacking here. While item 321 here corresponds to Orr nr. 325, the wording differs substantially.

Thereafter the present MS inserts 86 items (fol. 57v-71v), with numbering 322-406, largely with same contents and same arrangement as in MS Edinburgh Adv.MS.2.1.11 nr. 326-411, but the wording often varies. The inserted items mention years 1570, 1573, 1575 (nr. 323-326, fol. 58r-v). Thereafter, dates jump back to the year 1565. The series starts with 1565/3/29 (nr. 327, fol. 58v) and ends with 1565/3/2 (nr. 353, fol. 63r). The item Lord of St. Johnston v. Sinclair 1565/7/30 (here nr. 345, on fol. 60v) does not break off as it does in MS Laing III.429 fol. 127v. The next series of items comprises dates from 1566/4/26 (nr. 354, fol. 63r) to 1569/3/15 (nr. 384, fol. 68v). Then again a jump in time: 1551/6/19 (nr. 385, fol. 68v), 1554 (fol. 69r), 1564/3/19 (nr. 388, fol. 69r), then 1664 February, then a series from 1564/3/23 to 1566/2/15 (nr. 401-406, fol. 70v-71v).

From item 407 onward (= item Orr 321) the arrangement of items is again parallel to the Orr MS. Items Orr 321-349 correspond to 407-435 here (1570/11/30 - 1574/6/1, fol. 71-77v) [= nr. 412-440 in Adv.MS.24.1.11]. The wording of item 435 here [which in many other MSS has a gap, but not in the present MS] is quite different from Orr 349, and also different from Adv.MS.24.1.11 nr. 440. Item 414 here is dated 1575/11/5, whereas in MS Orr it is dated 1573/11/5. Item 415 here is dated 1573/11/13, whereas the corresponding item Orr 329 bears an obviously wrong date 1578/11/23. The dates ascend further to 1577/7/4, and the text of Maitland's Practicks ends there (nr. 500, fol. 88r = item MS Orr 415, same date)

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Author(s):

• Richard Maitland of Lethington

No. of pages: Fol. 1r - 88r line 17 (second series of numbering):

Incipit:

• [{i}First item:{/i}] Off the Lordis to be judges to strangearis. In the actioun and caus persewit be ane French man aganis ane Inglisman for restoring of ane schip, tane in in tyme of peace, it wes decernit be the Lords.

  [{i}Last item:{/i}] Off the discharge and suspensioun of ane reversioun. Anent the actioun of redemptioun persewit be the Laird of Drumquhassell as assignay to the Laird of Minto to ane reversioun maid be ane gentill woman ... fund relevant be the Lordis, and the defendaris allegiance repellit. 4 Julii 1577