ATTAINT, WRIT OF, is a writ which lies to en quire, whether a jury of twelve men have given a false verdict, in any court of record; in order that the judgment following upon that verdict may be rever sed. It is so called, because the party who obtains it, thereby endeavours to stain or taint the credit of the jury, in consequence of whose verdict lie feels himself aggrieved. This writ must be sued out in the lifetime of him in whose favour the verdict was given, and of, at least, two of the jurors who gave it.
At common law, this writ originally lay only upon verdicts in actions for such personal inj ' uries as did not amount to trespass ; because, in real wrongs the party aggrieved had redress by writ of' right. And it did not lie in the action of trespass, for this sin gular reason : that if the verdict were set aside, the king would lose his fine, But by stat. Westm. 1. 3 Edw. I. c. 38, it was given in all pleas of land, franchise, or freehold ; and by several subsequent statutes, in the reign of Edward III. and his grand. son, it was allowed in almost every action, except in a writ of right.
Twenty-four jurors are required to try this false ; verdict; who are called the grand jury. He that t brings the attaint can give no other evidence to the z grand jury, than what was originally given to the t petit ; because the question is solely, whether the i petit jury did right upon the evidence brought before ; them ? But those against whom the attaint is brought are allowed to bring new matter, in affirmance of the t first verdict ; because the petit jury may have formed z their verdict upon evidence of their own knowledge, which never aprared in court; and because the judg- ' ment inflicted upon them, at common law, if their z verdict was found to be false, was peculiarly severe.
This judgment was : That they should lose their /i beram legem, and become for ever infamous; that they should forfeit all their goods and chattels ; that their lands and tenements should be seised into the / king's hands ; that their wives and children should 2 be turned out of doors ; that their houses should be rased and thrown down ; that their trees should be I rooted up ; that their meadows should be ploughed ; that their bodies should be cast into gaol; that the i party should be restored to all that he had lost in ( consequence of the unjust verdict. The severity of this judgment, however, was mitigated by the statute I 11 Hen. VII. c. 24. revived by 23 Hen. VIII. C. 3. which inflicted a more moderate punishment upon ( attainted jurors ; viz. perpetual infamy, and, if the cause of action were above _R4.0 value, forfeiture of L'20 each by the jurors ; or, if under X40, £5 each ; to be divided between the king and the in jured party. So that an attaint may now be brought, either upon the statute, or at common law. But the practice of setting aside verdicts upon motion, and 1 granting new trials, has now superseded the use of 1 both sorts of attaints. See Blackst. Comment. b. iii.
C . 25. Jacob's Law Diet. (z)