COURT OF SESSION, the highest civil tribunal in Scotland, was instituted in the reign of king James V., by statute dating 17th May, 1532. The object of its institution was to discharge the judicial functions which originally belonged to the king and his council, and which, since 1425, had in a great measure devolved on a committee of par liament, as the great council of the nation. The C. of S. consisted at first of 14 ordi nary judges and a president. One half of these judges and the president were church men, and the practice of appointing ecclesiastics to the bench did not cease for some time even after the reformation. The king had the privilege of appointing, in addition to the ordinary judges, three or four peers or members of his great council, to sit and vote with the lords of session. When the lord chancellor (see CHANCELLOR OF SCOT LAND) was present, he was president of the session. His office was abolished at the union, and the habit of appointing peers gradually fell into disuse, though, when a peer chances to be present, he is still, as a mark of courtesy, accommodated with a seat on the bench. From its foundation, till 1808, the C. of S. consisted of one court; in that year it was divided into what are known as the first and second divisions, two separate courts possessing co-ordinate jurisdiction. The lord president is still president of the whole court when called together for consultation, and enjoys other privileges in that capacity; but on ordinary occasions he officiates simply as president of the first division. In 1810, another very important change was made. The first division up to this time had consisted of 7, and the second division of 6 ordinary judges, the latter being presided over by the lord justice-clerk (q.v.), as the former was by the lord presi dent. The three junior judges were now taken from the first division, and the two junior judges from the second, and appointed to sit as permanent lords ordinary in the outer house. The quorum, which had formerly been four, was now reduced to three
in both divisions. In 1830, the number of judges in the C. of S. was reduced to 13; and that is still the full number, though since 1877 there have actually been but 12 judges. Of the five lords ordinary, four only sit daily. The judgments of the outer house, with a few statutory exceptions, are appealable to the inner house. The young c-st judge, or junior lord ordinary, officiates in a separate department of the outer house, called the bill chamber (q.v.), where summary petitions, and other branches of business peculiarly requiring dispatch, are disposed of. This department alone is open during the vacations of the court, the judges, with the exception of the lord president and lord justice-clerk, officiating in it in rotation. Either division of the C. of S. may call in the aid of three judges of the other, when equally divided in opinion (31 and 32 Vict., cap. 100). In cases of still greater difficulty, the lords ordinary are also called in, and a hearing before the whole court, or Ia presence, as it is called, takes place. Since the 31 and the 32 Vict.. cap. 100, no hearings before the whole court have taken place; the cases being decided in written arguments submitted to the judges. The judges of the C. of S. are appointed by the crown, and hold their offices for life. No one is eligible to the office unless he MO served as an advocate or principal clerk of session for five, or as a writer to the signet for ten, years. Practically, none but advocates are appointed. No action for debt can originate in the C. of S. in which the interest of the pursuer is less than £25. With few exceptions, the judgments of the inferior courts of Scotland are reviewable by the C. of S., but this rule does not apply to the small-debt courts. The judgments of the C. of S. may be appealed to the house of lords within two years.