Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (1st ed, 1768, vol III).djvu/417

Ch. 25. uit, or puts darrein continuance, which, as was fhewn in a for- mer chapter k, muft always be before judgment) an audit a querela lies, in the nature of a bill in equity, to be relieved againft the oppreffion of the plaintiff. It is a writ directed to the court, ftating that the complaint of the defendant hath been heard, audit a querela defendentis, and then fetting out the matter of the complaint, it at length enjoins the court to call the parties before them, and having heard their allegations and proofs, to caufe juftice to be done between them '. It alib lies for bail, when judgment is obtained againft them by Jc ire fa- cias to anfwer the debt of their principal, and it happens after- wards that the original judgment againft their principal is rever- fed : for here the bail, after judgment had againft them, have no opportunity to plead this ipecial matter, and therefore they mall have redrefs by aiidita querela m ; which is a writ of a moft remedial nature, and feems to have been invented, left in any cafe there mould be an oppremre defect of juftice, where a party has a good defence, but by the ordinary forms of law had no opportunity to make it. But the indulgence now fhewn by the courts in granting a fummary relief upon motion, in cafes of fucli evident oppremon n, has almoft rendered ufelefs the writ of au- dita querela, and driven it quite out of practice. III. BUT, thirdly, the principal method of redrefs for erro- neous judgments in the king's courts of record, is by 'writ of er- ror to fome fuperior court, of appeal. A WRIT of error lies for fome fuppofed miftake in the pro- ceedings of a court of record ; for, to amend errors in a bafe court, not of record, a writ of falj'e judgment lies p. The writ of error only lies upon matter of law arifing upon the face of the pro- ceedings ; fo that no evidence is required to fubftantiate or fup- port it : and there is no method of reverfmg an error in the de- k See pag. 317. Lord Raym. 439. 1 Finch. .488. F.N.B.J02. Append. N. III. . 6. m i Roll. Abr. 308. Finch. L. 484. termination