A Latitat was a historical English legal writ, part of the common law procedure for commencing an action against a defendant. The name derives from the Latin word latitat, meaning "he lurks" or "he lies hid," referring to the defendant's supposed evasion of the court's process.
Purpose and Function
The writ of latitat served primarily to bring a defendant into the jurisdiction of the Court of King's Bench. In the early stages of common law, each court had specific jurisdiction. The King's Bench primarily dealt with criminal matters and pleas of the crown, and its civil jurisdiction was initially limited. To expand its civil jurisdiction, the King's Bench employed legal fictions.
The typical procedure involved:
- Bill of Middlesex: A plaintiff wishing to sue in the King's Bench would first allege, often fictitiously, that the defendant resided in the county of Middlesex and was in the custody of the Marshal of the Marshalsea (the prison of the King's Bench). This was a legal fiction, as the defendant was usually not in custody or physically in Middlesex.
- Latitat: If the defendant was not found in Middlesex (which was typically the case, as the initial allegation was a fiction), the court would then issue a writ of latitat. This writ commanded the sheriff of another county (where the defendant was actually believed to reside) to apprehend the defendant and bring them before the King's Bench. The latitat effectively extended the King's Bench's civil jurisdiction beyond Middlesex, using the initial (fictional) Bill of Middlesex as a pretext for the defendant's supposed flight.
Historical Context and Evolution
The use of the latitat evolved as a means for the King's Bench to compete with the Court of Common Pleas for civil business. The Common Pleas had original and general jurisdiction over civil actions between subjects, while the King's Bench's civil jurisdiction was more limited. By employing fictions like the Bill of Middlesex followed by the latitat, the King's Bench could attract more civil cases, as it offered certain procedural advantages and was sometimes seen as more expeditious.
This procedural device became a standard means of commencing a personal action in the King's Bench, particularly for actions like trespass, debt, or assumpsit, where the court's jurisdiction was initially based on an implied breach of the peace.
Obsolescence
The complex and often fictional nature of common law writs, including the latitat, was eventually streamlined by legal reforms in the 19th century. The Uniformity of Process Act 1832 (2 & 3 Will. IV c. 39) abolished the use of various personal writs like the latitat and Bill of Middlesex, replacing them with a single, uniform writ of summons for commencing actions in all common law courts. This reform aimed to simplify and rationalize court procedure, rendering the latitat obsolete.
The term "Latitat" is now primarily of historical and academic interest in the study of English legal history.