Joseph Chitty (12 March 1776 – 17 February 1841) was an
English lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
and legal
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...
, author of some of the earliest practitioners' texts and founder of an important dynasty of lawyers.
Life and practice
He was himself the son of a Joseph Chitty (1729–1795), and his wife, Sarah (''née'' Cartwright). He initially practised as a
special pleader
A special pleader was a historical legal occupation. The practitioner, or "special pleader" in English law specialised in drafting "pleadings", in modern terminology statements of case.
History
Up to the 19th century, there were many rules, tech ...
before being
called to the bar
The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
by the
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...
on 28 June 1816. He never became a
KC but built a huge junior practice at
1 Pump Court and published many books.
Chitty was also
pupil master to a generation of lawyers, including:
*
John Walter Hulme, his co-author and son-in-law, and the first
Chief Justice of Hong Kong
*
Thomas Starkie[Lobban (2004)]
*
Edward Hall Alderson
*
Thomas Noon Talfourd
*
Henry Havelock.
In fact, at the time, the
Inns of Court
The Inns of Court in London are the professional associations for barristers in England and Wales. There are four Inns of Court: Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple.
All barristers must belong to one of them. They have s ...
were in decline and Chitty organised lectures and
moots, in 1810 being given permission to use the hall of
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...
.
Personality and later life
Despite his successful practice, by 1831, Chitty had amassed extensive debts that were costing almost £2,000 per year to service. Further, Chitty's health was in decline and he was becoming increasingly anxious about his parlous state. Much of his energy became taken up in avoiding the attentions of his creditors. He retired from practice in 1833 but continued to publish. He died in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery.
Family
He married Elizabeth Woodward, and they had eight children. Of those, Joseph Chitty the younger,
Thomas Chitty,
Edward Chitty
Edward Chitty (1804–1863) was an English legal reporter, judge in Jamaica, and conchologist.
Life
The third son of Joseph Chitty the elder, he was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1829, and practised as an equity draughtsman. In 1840 he w ...
, and Thompson Chitty were lawyers and legal writers:
Joseph the younger and Thompson were the first editors of the standard textbook ''
Chitty on Contracts''.
Judge
Joseph William Chitty was a grandson (son of Thomas Chitty).
Bibliography
By Chitty
*Chitty, T. (1799) ''Treatise on Bills of Exchange''
*— (1808) ''Precedents of Pleading''
*— (1811a) ''Treatise on the Law of Apprentices''
*— (1811b) ''Treatise on the Game Laws''
*— (1812) ''Treatise on the Law of Nations''
*— (1818) ''Treatise on Commercial Law''
*— (1820) ''
Treatise on the Law of the Prerogatives of the Crown''
*— (1826) ''A Practical Treatise on the Criminal Law''
*— (1829–37) ''Statutes of Practical Utility''
*— (1833) ''The Practice of the Law in All its Principal Departments''
Notes
References
*
*
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chitty, Joseph
1776 births
1841 deaths
English lawyers
English legal writers
English male non-fiction writers