Breve

L. Lat. A writ An original writ. A writ or precept of the king issuing out of his courts. A writ by which a person is summoned or attached to answer an action, complaint, etc., or whereby anything is commanded to be done in the courts, in order to justice, etc. It Is called "breve," from the brevity of it, and is addressed either to the defendant himself, or to the chancellors, judges, sheriffs, or other officers. Skene.

— Breve de recto. A writ of right, or license for a person ejected out of an estate, to sue for the possession of it.

— Breve innominatum. A writ making only a general complaint, without the details or particulars of the cause of action.

— Breve nominatum. A named writ. A writ stating the circumstances or details of the cause of action, with the time, place, and demand, very particularly.

— Breve originale. An original writ; a writ which gave origin and commencement to a suit.

— Breve perquirere. To purchase a writ or license of trial in the king's courts by the plaintiff.

— Breve testatum. A written memorandum introduced to perpetuate the tenor of the conveyance and investiture of lands. 2 Bl. Comm. 307. In Scotch law. A similar memorandum made out at the time of the transfer, attested by the pares curve and by the seal of the superior. Bell.

pi. brevia.

In old English law. A writ; strictly an original,writ, a writ by which alone any action in a superior court could be begun; in a more general sense, any precept of the king in writing and under seal issuing out of any court; a commission of a justice of a superior court So called because of its brevity. Breve de recto: a writ of right Breve innoniinatum (pi. brevia innominata): a writ containing a general statement only of the cause of action. Breve judiciale (pi. brevia judicialia): a judicial writ; a writ issued by the court after the action was begun; any writ other than an original writ Breve nominatam (pi. brevia nominata): a writ in which the circumstances of the case were particularly set out Breve testatum: a conveyance in writing attested by subscribing witnesses; a brief memorandum attested by witnesses, and used as evidence of feudal investiture. Brevia adversaria: adversary writs; writs brought by an adversary to recover land. Brevia amicabilia: amicable writs, or writs brought by consent or agreement Brevia anticipantia: writs of prevention. Brevia formata, or de cursn: writs of form or of course; original writs the form of which was fixed and which issued as of course without cause shown. Brevia magistralia: writs prepared by the masters or clerks in chancery in cases for which there were no brevia formata, the writs being framed to suit the cases. They gave place, under the statute West II., c. 24, to writs upon the case. Brevia testata: brief memoranda used in ■ feudal times to perpetuate the tenor of conveyances and investitures, not signed nor sealed by the parties, but attested by witnesses and supported only by their testimony, — supposed to have been the origin of the modern deed. V. Bref; De, etc.

And have you then there this writ. The formal words directing the return ofa writ. he literal translation is retained in the modern form of a considerable number of writs. ca

pL, brevia, I., Bref, brefe, fr.. Brieve, sc. A writ. A precept of the King, in writing, issuing out of a court. Breve de recto: a writ of right. Breve originale: an original writ; V. Writ. Brevia anticipantia: writs of prevention, at common law; v. Writ. Brevia formata or de cursuj formed writs, or writs of course; v. Writ. Brevia judicialia: judicial writs; v. Writ. Brevia uominata: named writs, writs specifying the circumstances of the case; formed writs. Brevia iunominata: writs making only a general complaint. Brevia magistralia: writs prepared by the masters in chancery in cases where there were no brevia formata, the writ being varied to suit each case. The necessity for them was removed by Stat. West. II., c. 24, authorizing writs upon the case; v. Action on the ease, Writ. Brevia testata: short written memoranda of conveyances by livery or hand grants, from which the modern deed has grown. They were not signed, but contained the names of the witnesses to the conveyance.

(plur. Brevia.) L. Lat. [Fr. brief; 0. Fr. bref brief ve, brieffe; Scotch brieve; from Lat. brevis, brief, short.] In old English law. A writ; properly an original writ, {breve originate j) by which all actions in the superior courts of England were once required to be commenced. Hon potest quis sine brevi agere; no man can sue without a writ. Bract, fol. 413 b, 112. Steph. PL 5, 6. 3 BL Com. 272, 273. In a larger sense, any writ or precept of the king in writing, unaer seal, issuing out of any court, whereby he commands any thing to be done for the furtherance of justice and good order; comprising what were called judicial as well as originad writs. Termes de la leg, Blount. A commission to a judge or iustice of the superior courts of England had, from an early period, the form of a breve, or writ/ and was so called. Bract fol. 108 b, et seq. See Close writs, Bracton observes that a hreve is so tenned because it briefly, and in few words, sets forth the subject matter of the action and the claim of the plaintiflF; {dicitur ideo breve, quia rem de qua agitur, et intentionem petentis paucis verbis breviter enarrat,) Bract, fol. 112, 413 b. Theloall describes a breve to be a formal letter or epistle of the kin^, written in Latin on parchment, sealed with his seal, directed to some judge, officer, minister or other subject, at the suit of the king himself, or at the complaint and suit of another subject, commanding or author* izing something contained in the smd letter to be done, for the reason briefly expressed therein, which is to be the subject of judicial examination in some of the king's courts. TM, Dig, Ub. 1, c. 1. IT 4. The term breve (Gra Bcobarb. ^geffioy,) occurs in the imperial and pontifical constitutions as early as the third century, in the same sense which Bracton gives it, viz. a brief or summary statement in writing, {scriptum quod summam rei continet.) Speln^n. The breve of the English courts has been called a letter or epistle, because it commenced in the same way as the letters of the ancient Romans did: — Tititcs Aulo tuo, Salutem; Titius to his friend Aulus, Greeting: — Rex, justitiariis suis, <lcc,, salutem; The king to his justices, Greetmg. Our own writs at the present day commence with the same epistolary phrase; — "The People, &c., to the sheriff, &c., Greeting." See Epistola, Litteroe. So a letter of attorney (literoB procuratorice) was called in English, as old as Bracton's time, a "writ," (breve); and in law French, breve d' atturney. Bract, fol. 40. Litt. R, 143. The modem German Wti has the same sense of letter y and this meaning seems to be of very high antiquity. Hicke's Tlies, Diss, Epist, in notis, p. 3. Steph. PL Appendix, Note (2). See WHt. The great repository of the old English brevia is that ancient compilation termed Registrum Brevium, the Register of Writs, and usually referred to in the books as " The Register." See Registrum Brevium, The brevia are here arranged under two general heads, originalia and judicialia, comprising in the whole upwards of a thousand forms. They are individually named cither from the subject matter of them, or from one or more emphatic words of the forms themselves. In the former case, the preposition de is usually employed in designating the particular breve; thus, breve de recto, a writ of right; breve de ingressu^ a writ of entry; breve de conventione, a writ of covenant, &c. Most of these writs will be found in this dictionary, under the head of DE, with the proper addition in each case. Breve de recto. L. Lat. [L. Fr. brief de droit.] A writ of right. Reg. Grig, 1. Bract, fol. 328. So called because the words in the writ were, qvx>d sine dilatione plenum rectum teneas, (that without delay you do full right); or because the subject matter of the writ was the riglit {rectum) of property in lands. Co. Litt. 115 a. 158 b. 3 BL Com, 191, 193. See Writ of right. Breve originale. L. Lat. An original writ; a writ which gave origin and commencement to a suit, (quod actioni originem jjroestaj). Bract, fol. 413 b. 1 Reeves* Hist, Eng, Law, 319. Stat, Marlebr. c. 30. See Breve, Original writ. Breve judiciale. L. Lat. A judicial* writ; a writ issued in judicio, after a suit was commenced.* Crabb*s Hist, Eng. Law, 114. Bract, fol. 413 b. Any other writ than an original writ.* See Breve, Judicial writ. Breve nomikatum. L. Lat. A writ in which the circumstances of the case (time, place and demand,) were particularly expressed, or named; as distinguished from the breve innominatum, which contained only a* general complaint without particulars. Oilb, C, Pleas, 3, and note.

practice, is a writ in which the cause of action is briefly stated, hence itsname. It is issued to summon or attach a defendant requiring him to answer to an action, or any thing commanded to be done by the same.