ASSIZES
assizes, court of assize, court of assize and nisi prius
(noun) the county courts of England (replaced in 1971 by Crown courts)
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Noun
assizes
plural of assize
(historical) The regional courts of Great Britain, which were replaced by the crown courts in 1971.
Noun
assizes (plural assizes)
A trial or hearing before such a court.
Source: Wiktionary
ASSIZE
As*size", n. Etym: [OE. assise, asise, OF. assise, F. assises,
assembly of judges, the decree pronounced by them, tax, impost, fr.
assis, assise, p. p. of asseoir, fr. L. assid to sit by; ad + sed to
sit. See Sit, Size, and cf. Excise, Assess.]
1. An assembly of knights and other substantial men, with a bailiff
or justice, in a certain place and at a certain time, for public
business. [Obs.]
2. (Law)
(a) A special kind of jury or inquest.
(b) A kind of writ or real action.
(c) A verdict or finding of a jury upon such writ.
(d) A statute or ordinance in general. Specifically: (1) A statute
regulating the weight, measure, and proportions of ingredients and
the price of articles sold in the market; as, the assize of bread and
other provisions; (2) A statute fixing the standard of weights and
measures.
(e) Anything fixed or reduced to a certainty in point of time,
number, quantity, quality, weight, measure, etc.; as, rent of assize.
Glanvill. Spelman. Cowell. Blackstone. Tomlins. Burrill.
Note: [This term is not now used in England in the sense of a writ or
real action, and seldom of a jury of any kind, but in Scotch practice
it is still technically applied to the jury in criminal cases.
Stephen. Burrill. Erskine.]
(f) A court, the sitting or session of a court, for the trial of
processes, whether civil or criminal, by a judge and jury.
Blackstone. Wharton. Encyc. Brit.
(g) The periodical sessions of the judges of the superior courts in
every county of England for the purpose of administering justice in
the trial and determination of civil and criminal cases; -- usually
in the plural. Brande. Wharton. Craig. Burrill.
(h) The time or place of holding the court of assize; -- generally in
the plural, assizes.
3. Measure; dimension; size. [In this sense now corrupted into size.]
An hundred cubits high by just assize. Spenser.
[Formerly written, as in French, assise.]
As*size", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Assized; p. pr. & vb. n. Assizing.]
Etym: [From Assize, n.: cf. LL. assisare to decree in assize. Cf.
Asses, v.]
1. To assess; to value; to rate. [Obs.] Gower.
2. To fix the weight, measure, or price of, by an ordinance or
regulation of authority. [Obs.]
ASSIZE
As*size", n. Etym: [OE. assise, asise, OF. assise, F. assises,
assembly of judges, the decree pronounced by them, tax, impost, fr.
assis, assise, p. p. of asseoir, fr. L. assid to sit by; ad + sed to
sit. See Sit, Size, and cf. Excise, Assess.]
1. An assembly of knights and other substantial men, with a bailiff
or justice, in a certain place and at a certain time, for public
business. [Obs.]
2. (Law)
(a) A special kind of jury or inquest.
(b) A kind of writ or real action.
(c) A verdict or finding of a jury upon such writ.
(d) A statute or ordinance in general. Specifically: (1) A statute
regulating the weight, measure, and proportions of ingredients and
the price of articles sold in the market; as, the assize of bread and
other provisions; (2) A statute fixing the standard of weights and
measures.
(e) Anything fixed or reduced to a certainty in point of time,
number, quantity, quality, weight, measure, etc.; as, rent of assize.
Glanvill. Spelman. Cowell. Blackstone. Tomlins. Burrill.
Note: [This term is not now used in England in the sense of a writ or
real action, and seldom of a jury of any kind, but in Scotch practice
it is still technically applied to the jury in criminal cases.
Stephen. Burrill. Erskine.]
(f) A court, the sitting or session of a court, for the trial of
processes, whether civil or criminal, by a judge and jury.
Blackstone. Wharton. Encyc. Brit.
(g) The periodical sessions of the judges of the superior courts in
every county of England for the purpose of administering justice in
the trial and determination of civil and criminal cases; -- usually
in the plural. Brande. Wharton. Craig. Burrill.
(h) The time or place of holding the court of assize; -- generally in
the plural, assizes.
3. Measure; dimension; size. [In this sense now corrupted into size.]
An hundred cubits high by just assize. Spenser.
[Formerly written, as in French, assise.]
As*size", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Assized; p. pr. & vb. n. Assizing.]
Etym: [From Assize, n.: cf. LL. assisare to decree in assize. Cf.
Asses, v.]
1. To assess; to value; to rate. [Obs.] Gower.
2. To fix the weight, measure, or price of, by an ordinance or
regulation of authority. [Obs.]
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition