Heritable Jurisdictions Act
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| Long title | An Act for taking away and abolishing the Heretable Jurisdictions in Scotland; and for making Satisfaction to the Proprietors thereof; and for restoring such Jurisdictions to the Crown; and for making more effectual Provision for the Administration of Justice throughout that Part of the United Kingdom, by the King’s Courts and Judges there; ...and for rendering the Union of the Two Kingdoms more complete. |
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| Citation | 20 Geo. II c. 43 / 1746 c. 43 |
| Territorial extent | Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Other legislation | |
| Relates to | Acts of Union 1707 |
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Status: Current legislation
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| Revised text of statute as amended | |
Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746 (20 Geo. II c. 43) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745. It abolished the traditional judicial rights afforded to a Scottish clan chief and it also abolished the office of hereditary sheriff in Scotland. The office of sheriff had become hereditary, with a sheriff-depute appointed by the nobleman to undertake the substantive judicial work; these sheriffs-depute would become the modern-day sheriff principal. Following this act the sheriffs-depute were now appointed by the Monarch.
Article XX of the Union with England Act, 1707, had recognized these jurisdictions and other heritable offices as rights of property which continued in spite of the union, and so on abolition compensation was paid to the deprived heritors. There was opposition to the passage of the Act from the Duke of Argyll who argued that having multiple judicial jurisdictions ensured the liberty of the people of Scotland.
The long title of the Act, which sets out the scheme and intention, is:
An Act for taking away and abolishing the Heretable Jurisdictions in Scotland; and for making Satisfaction to the Proprietors thereof; and for restoring such Jurisdictions to the Crown; and for making more effectual Provision for the Administration of Justice throughout that Part of the United Kingdom, by the King’s Courts and Judges there; . . . and for rendering the Union of the Two Kingdoms more complete. For remedying the inconveniences that have arisen and may arise from the multiplicity and extent of heretable jurisdictions in Scotland, for making satisfaction to the proprietors thereof, for restoring to the crown the powers of jurisdiction originally and properly belonging thereto, according to the constitution, and for extending the influence, benefit, and protection of the King’s laws and courts of justice to all his Majesty’s subjects in Scotland, and for rendering the union more complete.
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