HISTORY OF LAW REPORTING
Left: David Dudley Field was the primary architect of the Code of Procedure,
adopted in 1846, also know as the Field Code.
Portrait courtesy of the Court of Appeals Collection
EXPANSION OF OFFICIAL REPORTING
As the nineteenth century unfolded, the official reporting of decisions spread gradually to New York’s other courts. Official Reports of the New York City Superior Court commenced in 1828 and those of the Vice-Chancellor' Courts in 1831.
The New York Constitution of 1846 and related legislation initiated drastic reform of the court system and established the groundwork for a unified system of official reporting of cases on a statewide basis. Notably, the new Constitution provided impetus for the adoption of a Code of Procedure. Known as the Field Code after its primary architect, David Dudley Field, the new system abolished the distinction in forms of procedure between suits in law and equity. Among other reforms, the Court for the Trial of Impeachments and the Correction of Errors and the Court of Chancery were abolished, the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court was radically altered, and a new court of last resort — the Court of Appeals — was created. The First Series of the New York Reports, covering cases decided by the Court of Appeals, commenced publication in 1847 under a reporter denominated the "State Reporter" and appointed by the executive branch.
The Judiciary Article of 1869 continued the reorganization initiated by the New York Constitution of 1846. Four General Terms of the Supreme Court, the precursors to today's Appellate Division, were authorized. The Article also transferred the authority to appoint the State Reporter from the executive branch to the Court of Appeals and provided for official publication of the decisions of the Supreme Court by a separate Supreme Court Reporter.
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Left:
Legislation passed April 11, 1848 (L 1848, ch 224, amending L 1847, ch 280, § 73) creating the position of State Reporter for the publication of decisions from the new Court of Appeals.
Right:
First volumes of the New York, Appellate Division, and Miscellaneous Reports. |
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