RECORD. A written memorial made by a public officer authorized by law to perform that function, and intended to serve as evi dence of something Written, said, or done. Mandeville v. Perry, 6 Call (Va.) 78; Cora. v. Rodes, 1 Dana (Ky.) 595.
Records may be either of legislative or judicial acts. Memorials of other acts are sometimes made by statutory provisions.
Legislative acts. The federal and state constitutions, acts of congress and of the several legislatures are the highest kind of records. The printed journals of congress have been so considered. See Dougl. 598; Cowp. 17.
A record in judicial proceedings is a pre cise statement of the suit from its commence ment to its termination, including the con clusion of law thereon, drawn up by the proper officer, for the purpose of perpetuating the exact state of facts; or in the language of Lord Coke, "records are memorials or re membrances, in roils of parchment, of the proceedings and acts of a court of justice, which bath power to hold pleas according to the course of the common law." See David son v. Murphy, 13 Conn. 216.
The proceedings of the courts of common law are records. But every minute made by a clerk of a court for his own future guid ance in making up his record is not a record ; Leveringe v. Dayton, 4 Wash. C. C. 698, Fed. Cas. No. 8,288. See Snyder v. Wise, 10 Pa. 157 ; Thomas v. Robinson, 3 Wend. (N. Y.) 267 ; Good v. French, 115 Mass. 201.
Proceedings in courts of chancery are said not to be, strictly speaking, records ; but they are so considered ; Gresl. Ev. 101. And see Scott v. Blanchard, 8 Mart. N. S. (La.) 303 ; Craig v. Brown, 1 Pet. C. C. 352, Fed. Cas. No. 3,328.
In a case brought ftom the circuit court, the opinion regularly filed below may be ex amined in order to ascertain whether either party claimed that a state statute upon which the judgment necessarily depended, in whole or in part, was in contravention of the United States Constitution, but not to ascer tain that which should be made to appear in a bill of exceptions, or the pleadings; Loeb v. Columbia Tp. Trustees, 179 U. S. 484, 21 Sup. Ct. 174, 45 L. Ed. 280 ; or to ascertain wheth
er the case raises any question determined adversely to a right, etc., under the constitu tion or laws of the United States ; Gross v. Mortg. Co., 108 U. S. 477, 2 Sup. Ct. 940, 27 L. Ed. 795. The former rule that the opinion below was no part of the record was abrogat ed (Murdock v. Memphis, 20 Wall. [U. S.) 590, 22 L. Ed. 429), and finally a rule of court provided that a copy of the opinion below should go up in the transcript ; Loeb v. Co lumbia Tp. Trustees, 179 U. S. 484, 21 Sup. Ct. 174, 45 L. Ed, 280. But the mere fact that a paper is found among the files does not make it a part of the record ; it must be put there by some action of the court below ; Eng land v. Gebhardt, 112 U. S. 502, 5 Sup. Ct. 287, 28 L. Ed. 811, but it is said that this language cannot be taken too broadly ; Loeb v. Columbia Tp, 179 U. S. 484, 21 Sup. Ct. 174, 45 L. Ed. 280.
It is within the power of any court of general jurisdiction to restore its lost rec ords or to expunge false or fraudulent in terpolations theiein; Blakemore v. Wilson, 61 Ill. App. 454 ; or where the record is si lent, or, where it suggests as a fact some thing contrary to the fact, to correct the rec ord by an order wane pro tune; Holman v. State, 79 Ga. 155, 4 S. E. 8. See In re Wight, 134 U. S. 136, 10 Sup. Ct. 487, 33 L. Ed. 865. The power of a court to amend its own records is limited to the correction of actual mistakes and omissions ; Jones v. Newton, 65 Hun 619, 19 N. Y. Supp. 786. A court has an inherent power to amend its record ; this is not to create a new record, but presupposes an existing record suscepti ble of amendment; Gagnon v. U. S., 193 U.
S. 451, 24 Sup. Ct. 510, 48 L. Ed. 745. A court may always, after the expiration of the term, amend the record mune pro tune to conform to the facts, where there are suf ficient data ; Borrego v. Territory, 8 N. M. 446, 46 Pac. 349. If there has been a failure to file a record within the time required, a subsequent filing cures this defect; provided no motion to docket and dismiss has been made ; 24 U. S. App. 527.