Brown v. Campbell
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
THIS was an appeal from the decision of the circuit court of Indiana county, which appropriated the proceeds of the sale of the real estate of the defendant in error. And the only question which arose was, whether tbe issuing of a fi. fa. and a levy upon a particular tract of land, preserved the lien of the judgment upon other lands beyond the period of five years, without-a scire facias.
1Per curiam
The argument, that the legislature meant to give permanency to what had been already done by the courts, though deemed to have been a misconstruction in the first instance, is plausible, but unsound. By the words “ then existing laws,” was doubtless meant, not only the text of the preceding acts, but the qualification it had received in practice. But though the legislature did not mean to interfere with any established practice as regarded the past-, they evidently did not mean to give it the fixed form of positive enactment. To have done so, would have been deliberately to render the…
2Cited by3 opinions
- Harman v. MaySupreme Court of Arkansas · 1882
- City of Philadelphia v. ScottSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1879
- Schacklett's AppealSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1850