19 March 1808

Letter V

§.6. Reasons

Ends of Justice

Injustice v. Defend t Causes

V. Non-Justicialities of Plff.

V. Non Justiciability on the opposite side: viz. on the part of the Plaintiff.

This is not, strictly speaking, of the number of the causes by which injustice is liable to be produced to the prejudice of the defendant's side.

What may indeed happen, and does in fact happen but too frequently, is that by non-justiciability on the part of a plaintiff, the defendant sustains a loss, and in so doing suffers a wrong, in respect of the expense imposed on him by the obligation of defending himself against an unjust demand. But in so far as for that or any other wrong he demands money in the name of satisfaction i.e. as lawyers phrase it, applies for costs, he takes upon him to that effect the character of plaintiff: he acts as plaintiff in an incidental demand, a sort of cross cause, arising out of the original and principal one. Suppose the Defendant to have no demand on the Plaintiff, the non-justiciability of the Plaintiff can be no loss to him.