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35 Ill. 53

Miles v. Goodwin

Illinois Supreme Court

Decided April 15, 1864

Illinois Supreme Court · decided 1864-04-15

Writ of Error to the Court of Common Pleas of the city of Aurora; Hon. Benjamin F. Parks, Judge, presiding. The defendants in error, on the 17th day of June, 1861, sued out from the Court of Common Pleas of the city of Aurora, a writ of attachment against the plaintiffs.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1864-04-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 6 later decisions — most recently May 1955

6 state decisions

301864187018801890190019101920193019401950decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

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Mr. Chief Justice Walker

¶1delivered the opinion of the Court:

¶2It is insisted that there are such defects in the writ and its service on Bradford S. Miles, as renders the judgment erroneous. We deem it unnecessary to examine these various objections, as they were cured, if they ever existed, by his appearance to the action. After a default was entered, he appeared and moved the court to set aside the default, which motion was allowed. He then entered a motion to dismiss the suit, which was overruled. By making these motions he fully appeared to the action, and if so, it could make no difference whether there was a defective writ or defective service, as his being in court rendered a writ and service unnecessary. If a defendant enter his appearance to a declaration, all attorneys know, that a judgment is binding although a writ was never issued or service had. The object, and only object, of the writ is to bring the party into court, and if he voluntarily enters his appearance, the court has complete jurisdiction of his person.

¶3It is likewise insisted that the court erred in assessing the damages on the default, without the intervention of a jury. The act creating the Court of Common Pleas of the city of Aurora, establishes the same rules of practice for that court as are provided for the Kane Circuit Court. (Spec. Laws 1857, p. 392, sec. 1.) By reference to the act regulating the practice in the Kane Circuit Court (Scates’ Comp. 639), it will be seen that the court is authorized to assess damages on judgments by default, without a jury. This statute is decisive of this question. By its provisions, the power is expressly conferred. No error is discovered in the record, and the judgment of the court below is affirmed.

¶4Judgment affirmed.

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