Thomas Clarkson - LITTLE LEGAL DISPUTES

    Changes were occurring in the legal halls of the colony and in 1814 the Civil Court became divided into 3 sections. These divisions were known as the Supreme Court, the Lieutenant Governor's Court and the Governor's Court. The Governor's Court was specifically formed to deal with the redemption of small debts, restricted to cases involving not more than £50. It was presided over by the Judge Advocate and two others.(1)
    Thomas Clarkson was to frequent this court a number of times to register suits and at times to answer the suit of others. He was by no means a stranger to a court of law but always his offences were of a non violent nature and almost totally involved financial matters.
    In his profession as a brewer, baker, builder and landlord we've seen that he worked his financial affairs in a manner that is common today; borrowing on credit and promises. Whilst lending was an integral part of everyday life, the difficulties lay in retrieving the debt. It was to the Governor's Court that many creditors finally resorted when all else failed to settle the promises.
    The year of 1816 saw Thomas answer the suits of two men who had lent him money. These were for unpaid promises and unfortunately the records here are very scarce, and sometimes leave us with only the bare essentials to go on.(2)
In the year of our Lord -- to wit Capias against Thomas Clarkson of Sydney, dealer, at the suit of Andrew Frazer of Sydney, baker, for £50 upon promises
Bail as by order
£88/-/-
Bail Joseph Smith of Sydney Labourer and Abraham Whittaker of Sydney Labourer. Each of the bail of £ 88
    Andrew Frazer was the baker who joined Thomas in his fine for selling bread under the assize price in 1813,(3) Joseph Smith a former owner of some of the premises Thomas had purchased close to Hunter St,(4) and Abraham Whittaker was the contractor of the Grose Farm fence for whom Thomas went surety in 1814.(5)
    In February 1816, Hugh Crabtree, a well known associate of Thomas' brought action against him for allegedly refusing to honour a promissory note of John Jones', drawn by Clarkson, "his certain note in writing commonly called a promissory note his hand being hereunto subscribed" for the value of £34.(6)
    Nathaniel Miller, butcher, swore a    deposition that Clarkson did indeed owe the money and that the due date was long past. Bail was set at £60/-/- and was posted by Joseph Smith of Phillip St and Abraham Whittaker of Castlereagh St, both labourers. No verdicts for either case have been located as yet.
    Early in 1816 Thomas Clarkson filed suit against Thomas Legg, a bricklayer of Sydney.(7) These two men were well acquainted. (Legg had previously sold two properties to Thomas, one of which was very close to Clarkson's own home and which was the very one to spark off this dispute.)    Image Clarkson vs Legg
    This was No 53 Phillip St which Thomas Legg had sold to Thomas Parsonage on 11 November 1813, for £105 sterling "but reserving to himself the use and occupation of the same for 6 months".(8) Thomas Parsonage then in turn, sold the premises to Thomas Clarkson in February of the following year for the name amount of money -- "with Legg ratifying the same".(9)
    By the 1 April 1816, Legg had occupied the house for 80 weeks and it would appear that his accounts with Thomas Clarkson for the rent of the house "and divers goods , wares and merchandise by the said Thomas Clarkson before that time sold to the said Thomas Legg" were long overdue.(10) Legg had promised repayment AS required and WHEN required by Thomas Clarkson. According to Clarkson though, Legg owed him these several sums of money and was refusing to pay even though he'd been approached by Clarkson on various occasions. The claim was made that Legg owed £50 and was "contriving and fraudulently intending craftily and subtly to deceive and defraud the said Thomas Clarkson in this respect".(11)
    As a result of this complaint Frederick Darling, Judge Advocate ordered William Gore, the Provost Marshall of the colony to "bring the body of Thomas Leqg of Sydney, in the territory, bricklayer or to take bail for his appearance before the Governor's Court at Sydney on 1st June 1816".(12) Bail was set at £50 and the subpoena was dated 1 June 1816, Later events were to show that Legg was probably evicted from the premises as other tenants appear from here on.
    In 1817 the Provost Marshall published a list of properties to be auctioned to the public, in the Sydney Gazette of 5 July. The auctions were the results of decisions handed down in the various courts and were specifically to recover debts. The following item was included…(13)
Terry v Clarkson
By virtue of an execution issued forth of the Governor's Court,
I will cause to be set up for sale by Public Auction, on Tuesday the 5th instant in the Public Market Place (today's location is that of the Victoria
Building) Sydney at one o'clock precisely 1 horse with harness and a cart
And at 2 o'clock the same day will be sold, on the premises - the neat household furniture the property of the Defendant
    Terms --- Prompt Payment.
    We have lost count of the amount of times that Thomas' home and household goods were threatened with sale but like their owner they just keep resurfacing in time for another crisis. Several actions concerning the sale of Thomas' goods, were cancelled due to payments being forthcoming just in time to save them. Perhaps this was just another such case.

 Page last updated -  7 July 2006