COURT, in a law sense, the place where judges distribute justice, or exer cise jurisdiction ; also the assembly of judges, jury, &c. in that place.
Courts are divided into superior and in ferior, and into courts of record and base courts : again, courts are either such as are held in the King's name, as all the ordinary courts, or where the precepts are issued in the name of the judge, as the admiral's court.
The superior courts are, those of the King's Bench, the Common Pleas, the Exchequer, and the Court of Chancery. A court of record is that which has a power to hold plea, according to the course of the common law, of real, per sonal, and mixed actions ; where the debt or damage is forty shillings or above, as the court of King's Bench.
A base court, or a court not of record, is where it cannot hold plea of debt, or damage amounting to forty shillings, or where the proceedings are not according to the course of the common law, nor in rolled ; such as the county-court, courts of hundreds, court-baron, &c.
The rolls of the superior courts of re cord are of such authority, as .not to ad mit of any proof against them, they be ing only triable by themselves ; but the proceedings of base courts may be denied, and tried by a jury. Some of the courts may fine, but not imprison, a person, such as the leer ; and some can neither fine nor inflict punishment, and can only amerce, as the county-court, court-baron, &c. But the courts of record at West. minster Hall have power to fine, imprison, and amerce ; and in those courts the plantiff need not show, in his declaration, that the cause of action arises within their jurisdiction, being general ; though, in inferiorcourts, itmust be showed at huge, on account they have particular jurisdic tions.