PRIVY COUNCIL (Consilium regis privatum, Concilium secretum et con tinuum coucilium regis). The privy council, or council table, consists of the assembly of the king's privy councillors for matters of state. During the existence of the Star-chamber, the members of the privy council were also members of that court. Their number was antiently about twelve, but is now indefinitely increased. The present usage is, that no members attend the deliberations of the council who are not especially summoned for that pur pose. Members of the privy council must be natural-born subjects of England, and are nominated by the king without any patent or grant. After nomination and taking the oath of office, they immediately become privy councillors. Formerly they remained in office only during the life of the king, who chose them subject to re moval at his discretion; but by 6 Anne, c. 7, the privy council continues in ex istence six months after the demise of the crown, unless sooner determined by the successor, and they are to cause the suc cessor to be proclaimed. The privy coun cil of Scotland is now merged in that of England, by 6 Anne, c. 6. The duties of privy councillors, as stated in the oath of office, are to the best of their discretion truly and impartially to advise the king; to keep secret his counsel, to avoid cor ruption, to strengthen the king's council in all that by them is thought good for the king and his land, to withstand those who attempt the contrary, and to do all that a good councillor ought to do unto his sovereign lord. By the Act of Settle ment (12 & 13 Wm. III. c. 2) all matters relating to the government properly cog nizable in the privy council are to be transacted there; and all the resolutions taken thereon are to be signed by such of the privy council as advise and consent to them. LCARINET.) The court of privy council is of great antiquity ; and during earlier periods of our history appears not always to have confined itself to mere matters of state. It had always and still has power to in quire into all offences against the govern ment, and to commit offenders for the purpose of trial in some of the courts of law ; but it often assumed the cognizance of questions merely affecting the property and liberties of individuals. This is evi
dent from the complaints and remon strances that so frequently occur in our history, and ultimately from the declara tory law of the 16 Chas. I. referring to such practices. Probably the very state ment of Sir Edward Coke, that the sub jects of their deliberation are the " pub lique good, and the honour, defence, safety, and profit of the realm ....private causes, lest they should hinder the pub lique, they leave to the justices of the king's courts of justice, and meddle not with them," proceeded from his know ledge that such limits had not always been observed, and his jealousy of their inva sion. Several other passages in his works seem to show that this was so. These encroachments, in one arbitrary reign, received the sanction of the legislature. By 31 Hen. VIII. c. 8, the king, with the advice of his privy council, was em powered to set forth proclamations under such pains and penalties as seemed to them necessary, which were to be ob served as though they were made by Act of Parliament. It is true there was an attempt to limit the effects of this, by a proviso that it was not to be prejudicial to any person's inheritance, offices, liberty, goods, or life. The statute itself, however, was repealed in the first year of the en siling reign. The king, with the advice of his council, may still publish procla mations, which are said to be binding on the subject; but the proclamations must be consonant to and in execution of the laws of the land. The attempts to en large the jurisdiction of the council ap pear always to have been resisted as illegal ; and they were finally checked by the 16 Chas. 1. c. 10. That statute re cites that of late years "the council-table bath assumed unto itself a power to inter meddle in civil causes, and matters only of private interest between party and party, and have adventured to determine of the estates and liberties of the subject, contrary to the laws of the land, and the rights and privileges of the subject." By the same statute it is declared and enacted that neither his majesty nor his privy council have or ought to have any juris diction in such matters, but that they ought to be tried and determined in the ordinary courts of justice, and by the or dinary courts of law.