Bill Introduced in Illinois Legislature
to Limit Jurisdiction of Justices of Peace1Jump to section
An act to limit the jurisdiction of Justices of the Peace.
Be it enacted by the people of the State of Illinois represented in the General Assembly---That hereafter Justices of the Peace shall not e[n]tertain jurisdiction of any civil case whatever---unless it be in the precinct in which the defende[nt] resides or [sic]---or in which the contract on which suit is brought was made and entered into, or made payable---any thing in former laws to the contrary notwithstanding.
This act to be in force from and after the first day of June next.
Annotation
[1] AD, I-Ar. This was Lincoln's first bill. Much revised and amended in committee, it passed the House, but was tabled by the Senate.