A forme of Christian pollicie drawne out of French by Geffray Fenton. A worke very necessary to al sorts of people generally, as wherein is contayned doctrine, both vniuersall, and special touching the institution of al Christian profession: and also conuenient perticularly for all magistrates and gouernours of common weales, for their more happy regiment according to God.

¶ The dutie of Aduocats, or Councellours at Law. Chapter ix.

ADuocates, or Councellours at law, are not as coadiutors to Iudges and Gentlemen Presidents and chiefe Iustices, to decyde and determine: but onely with their aduise by opi∣nions and reasons, alleadginge cu∣stomes, ordinances, statutes, and lawes, they serue to explayne causes of their clyentes, leauing the iudgement to the Iudges called and consti∣tuted. To euery one of those the wise man speaketh: open thy mouth to the dombe, meaning, speake for the ignorant man, and vnderstand the causes of al persons:* 1.1 consider well that which is iuste, and take vppon thée the cause of the poore and néedie: as if he had saied, thou which art Aduocat, receyue the causes of all suche as come vnto thée and their complaintes (for that thou art bound to all by thine estate) speake liberally for y^e poore, in whom being no knowledge to deduce their case, they haue lesse meane to informe the Iudge: such instructe both what they shall saye and doe: be no partie eyther in councell or mayntenance to a wicked cause, nor suf∣fer any to doe wronge to the poore (to whom the wise man séemes to perswade moste compassion, for that to such is seldome showed fauour or credite of men) for God hath giuen thée grace to speake, and opened to thée the vnderstanding of the Lawes, to the ende to mini∣ster helpe to others, as to the toong hée hath gyuen

the facultie of spéech, to speake for the whole bodie and for euery perticuler member, chiefly when any of them is grieued, and in cases of wrong: euen so the Lawyer which is the toūg and interpretor to the body polletike and of all men being in affaires and busines, ought to spare no compassion to the cause of the poore, disposing his office to iustefie right, and bring all wrong to pun∣nishment, wherein, besides that he satisfieth at the full the office of his vocation, yet, in soliciting for the poore, he doth a seruice of greatest merit with God, in seeing iustice to be kept (one of the first actes of vertue) and in iustifying the innocent, he defendes him from violent oppression, and preseruing his smal porcion of goods, kéepes him from the hospitall, and his wife and familie from perishing by hunger: In sustayning the cause of the poore, and procuring condemnation to the wicked, he doth double worke of mercie, & obserueth that which so often God recommendes in the Scripture: where∣in, the Iudge, executing the good aduise and exhortacion of the aduocate, accomplisheth the iudgement of God, doing an act of high praise, and worthy of eternall feli∣citie. The aduocate thus being the mouth of the peo∣ple, and chiefe enformer of the Iudge, ought not to bee ignorant in the written lawe, customes, statutes, and ordenances of the land, helping his wit with the art of reasoning, and his iudgement with general experience in all affaires, wherein the science of Logicke, morall discourse, and specially the studie of polletike reasoning may bring great helpe to him: for if by ignorance hée giue wicked counsel, and leade the partie in a vaine ex∣pence of money to pursue an vniust cause: or if by in∣direct or suttle dealing, hee cause an other to loose his righteous sute: though the lawes of ages and countreis appoynt him no punishment, yet, being guiltie both to the one and other losse, I doubt not but by the lawes of heauen and conscience, he ought to refine to the parties

the full damage hapned by his corrupt counsell: No lesse punishment (but greater shame) is due to the ig∣norant iudge giuing corrupt sentence by the perswasi∣on of the aduocate, as to whom it belonges to be more wise and resolute, not deseruing to sit in the seate of a Iudge afore he haue thorowly passed the office of an ad¦uocate, and practised lawes in publike court which hée had read in priuate studies. But if the aduocate enter∣taine by couert sleightes and suttleties vniust causes, procuring cauillations by delayes, to weary the man whose sute is good and enforce him to a hurtfull accord, and so by his shiftes, peruert iustice into iniquitie: be∣sides that he is bound to satisfaction of the losse, yet he is not out of the perill of Gods curse: Aduocates and procurers, who by entertayning processes in delayes empouerish good men, and become riche them selues: and such (the very instruments of Sathan) as eyther bréede or norish quarell betwéene parties, are condem∣ned to all wretchednes by Iesus Christ: For if such as be peaceworkers be happy, of common congruence thē who hindreth, confoundeth, or delayeth peaceable cau∣ses are ordayned to misery, as by whom is set abroche among neighbours the vessell of grudge, malice, hatred sorowe, heauines, and vtter vndoing, and also losse of time in their established trades and vocations where∣vnto they are called by God: and if they be not y^e causes directly that their clients offend God in many sorts, at least, they kéepe them from seruing him, restrayning al their hart thoughts, and industrie to the furthering of their proces, which cannot bée but a kind of impietie, yea oftentimes it hapneth, that by the dilatorie shiftes of solicitors and attorneys, many rich clients sée no end of their cause in many yeres, whereby it hapneth that he that preuaileth reapes not so much as he hath spent, and he that is ouerthrowne is sent to the bagge & wal∣let, being afore the beginning of the sute, of good estate

of habilitie: To such as be the occasions of this euill, I aske this question, if they be not iudged by their owne lawe, which sayth, such as giue the occasion of euill, séeme to do the euill it selfe: if the sinne bee as great to him that holdeth, as to the other that cuts the throte of the iust mā is there any grace or distinction in the sen∣tence touching the Iudge, specially if he may apply re∣medie, and abuse his meane? Let no man erre by co∣uertures of writtes, or wrested titles of the expoun∣ders of the law, or orders of courtes, for in what sort so euer they do wrong to any man, according to iudge∣ment and conscience (which with great aduise ought to be considered, more then the opinion and comments of writers hid vnder the shadowe of the lawe, and yet a∣gainst the lawe, which of it selfe is iust and good, so that it be not abused) they worke their owne depriuation of the life eternall: The vnrighteous (sath Saint Paule) shall neuer possesse the kingdome of God:* 1.2 And who are more vnrighteous thē such as worke against the iudge¦ment and intencion of the lawe, and contrary to the se∣cret aduise of reason and sense of conscience which is not blinded through affections and custome of euill: Would those smooth and coosening Lawyers (if they were in the state of their simple clyents) attribute it to wel doing, to haue (with them) their best bloud drawne from them without féeling, and that which remaines, become too corrupt for horseleaches? Let them thinke vnhappie is the gaine, wherein vnhappely is wrought the destruction of poore soules: What other thing doe counsellors and attorneys committing to their Clerks Bookes of length and many lines, and consequently of more gaine to them selues, but draw by suteltie mo∣ney out of the poore mans purse? What other thing is it then to impugne God, hurt their conscience, seduce the Prince, the Court, and the world, and vnder cooller of that iust and lawful gaine, to commit manifest theft,

whereof they stand condemned in the iudgement of God, where all suttletie shalbe reuealed, (which Saint Paule calleth darknes) and all iniquitie examined,* 1.3 not according to the vaine fancie of couetous & fleshly men, which think there is no other iniquitie but that which is séene and palpable to the hand: but euen the most & suttle craft that may be imagined, shalbe by the euer∣lasting eye so clearely spied and descerned that it shalbe iudged worthy of death: one of the offēces that most dis∣pleaseth God, is the sinne of the Deuill, as to be a de∣ceiuer, a Traytor, a dissembler, malicious, author of quarrelles, suttle, and polletike to do euill: it is said the Deuill that appeared to Eue hid vnder the visible serpēt, was, of all other creatures most craftie & suttle: Then if our aduocates and attorneis, being instructed in the deuils sutteltie, sticke not to glorifie themseiues to haue so good a teacher and master to learne them: by good reason, as they practise his instruction and ex∣ample, they are also to receiue with him a common re∣warde and recompence, yea let them be assured, that the suttle are taken in their owne snares, and that no councell, cunning nor reason stande a fore God, who being able to confound all, will call into terible iudg∣ment al such masquid and disguised suttelties? is it not a vaine and foolish sutteltie to beguile a poore man of a halfpeny, and for it to be condemned to lose a crowne:* 1.4 what folly more, then for the gaining of certaine tran∣sitorie drosse here on earth by suttle means, to be con∣demned to the losse of all goodes, body, and soule eter∣nally in the worlde to come? But good aduocates led by simplicitie of conscience (as Aristotell, sayth by his knife seruing to mani vses, and therfore very profita∣ble) are men no lesse conuenient, necessarie, and hono∣rable, then any other sort in a comon weale, and of whom perticular estates in a kingdom, stand in nede: so that if they pursue their estate according to the right

office and dutie of the same, they conteine men in order and bring infinit commodities to a whole countrie: they supporte the right of the prince, and valiantly resiste such as seeke to blaspheme against his maiestie: blasphe∣mye I call with the apostels, outrage done against y^e maiestie of the prince representing God in earth and therfore the iniurie done against the prince turneth a∣gainst God: In causes of affairs concerning princes, officers of all estates, chauncelers, presidents, coun∣selers, noble men, marchants, riche, pore, widowes & maides, ther is necessitie of the aduocate, who in cau∣ses of pleading, is called and instructed in the cause: yea in these dayes, the dissembled vicar of Rome, his cardinalls, bishops, curats, pristes, & clarkes, if there be question touching their office or authoritie, must resorte to the aduocate to emplede the estate of y^e cause in what supreame courte soeuer it be: he good aduocate seruing God and folowing integritie, is the mediator betwéene quarilous people, O reconcilar of ennmies, y^e authore of peace and an example to a common weale: Touching common proces, he accordeth mo in one hower, then a whole parciall court doth in thrée yeres he will make conscience to enterteyne a proces, which he foreseith is like to continue longe? and therfore gi∣ueth councell of agrement to the parties: if he knowe any pore man ouermatched w^t a riche or captious ad∣uersarie, he doth what he can to drawe the matter to accorde, wherby he deliuereth the person from encom¦ber, and his goodes from daunger to be loste by the ha∣zard of the iudges: yea one good aduocat doth more good seruice to the world, then many iudges in whome is constraint to giue sentence, according to their offices being not able to accorde the parties by arbitration: it is not meete that an aduocate (notwithstanding his excelencie of knowledge, without longe experience of pleading) aspire to the office of a iudge or president

but eyther by constraint of the Prince, or by compulsi∣on of olde age, being no more able to sustaine the la∣bours due to the dutie of that profession: not buying y^e dignitie, which the Pagans estéemed the same vice which we call simonie: but by election of other Iudges of the Court in whom may rest suretie for his vpright dealing: procurers, which are as publike soliciters and generall syndickes of all causes, in place of the parties to solicit aduocates and Iudges, and procure expedicion of Iustice to their clients: and notaries appoynted to receiue faithfully & truly the appoyntments of Iudges contenting them selues with their rate authorised by y^e court, or ordained by their Prince, ought without fut¦tletie, delaye, or couetousnes, exercise their estate: wic∣ked notaries in Esaie are subiect to malediction,* 1.5 as also vnrighteous Law readers and Iudges, because they write and pronounce vnrighteous Lawes.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Pro. 31.
• * 1.2

  1. Cor. 6.
• * 1.3

  1. Cor. 4.
• * 1.4

  Iob. 5. 1. Cor. 32. Pro. 21.
• * 1.5

  Esay. 10.