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Legal equity: The Court of Chancery, in early 19th-century London.. In the field of jurisprudence, equity is the particular body of law, developed in the English Court of Chancery, [1] with the general purpose of providing legal remedies for cases wherein the common law is inflexible and cannot fairly resolve the disputed legal matter. [2]
Maxims of equity are legal maxims that serve as a set of general principles or rules which are said to govern the way in which equity operates. They tend to illustrate the qualities of equity, in contrast to the common law, as a more flexible, responsive approach to the needs of the individual, inclined to take into account the parties' conduct and worthiness.
Notably, the United States Constitution's Seventh Amendment preserves the right to a jury trial in civil cases over $20 to cases "at common law". Equity is said to operate on the conscience of the defendant, so an equitable remedy is always directed at a particular person, and that person's knowledge, state of mind and motives may be relevant ...
A court of equity, also known as an equity court or chancery court, is a court authorized to apply principles of equity rather than principles of law to cases brought before it. These courts originated from petitions to the Lord Chancellor of England and primarily heard claims for relief other than damages, such as specific performance and ...
Earl of Oxford's case (1615) 21 ER 485 is a foundational case for the common law world, that held equity (equitable principle) takes precedence over the common law.. The Lord Chancellor held: "The Cause why there is Chancery is, for that Mens Actions are so divers[e] and infinite, that it is impossible to make any general Law which may aptly meet with every particular Act, and not fail in some ...
Meagher, Gummow & Lehane's Equity: Doctrines and Remedies is a scholarly legal text originally composed by three Australian judges, Roddy Meagher, William Gummow and John Lehane. It is the preeminent publication on Equity in both Australia [ 1 ] and England .
In common-law legal systems, laches (/ ˈ l æ tʃ ɪ z / LAT-chiz, / ˈ l eɪ-/; Law French: remissness, dilatoriness, from Old French: laschesse) is a lack of diligence and activity in making a legal claim, or moving forward with legal enforcement of a right, particularly in regard to equity. It is an unreasonable delay that can be viewed as ...
Equity is a roguish thing: for law we have a measure, know what to trust to; equity is according to the conscience of him that is Chancellor, and as that is larger or narrower, so is equity. ‘Tis all one, as if they should make his foot the standard for the measure we call a Chancellor's foot; what an uncertain measure would this be!