COMMON Pleas, is one of the king's courts now held constantly in Westminster-hall, but in former times was moveable.
All civil causes, as well real as personal, are, or were formerly, tried in this court, according to the strict law of the land. In personal and mixed actions it has a concurrent jurisdiction with the king's bench, but has no cognizance of pleas of the crown. The actions belonging to the court of common pleas come thither by original, as arrests and outlawries; or by privilege, or attachment for or against privileged persons; or out of inferior courts, not of record, by pone,
recordari, accedas ad curiam, writ of false judgment, &c. The chief judge of this court is called lord Chief Justice of the common pleas, who is assisted by three other judges: the other officers of the court are the custos brevium, who is the chief clerk; three prothonotaries, and their secondaries; the clerk of the warrants, clerk of the effoins, 14 filazers, 4 exigentors, a clerk of the juries, the chirographer, the clerk of the king's silver, clerk of the treasury, clerk of the seal, clerk of the outlawries, clerk of the enrolment of fines and recoveries, and clerk of the errors.