Smith v Critchfield: CA 24 Apr 1885

Protection of Sherriff in Execution Against Goods

The court considered when relief should be granted to the Sherriff issuing executing against a complaint by the debtor. Brett MR said: ‘It seems to me that the sheriff is entitled to protection in respect of the whole of the act which through error he has wrongfully done under the writ, that is, in respect of his having entered the house and seized the goods. What do the authorities say? In the case of Winter v Bartholomew 11 Ex 704; 25 LJ (Ex) 62 it is said that the sheriff may be protected in such a case as this in respect both of the trespass to the land and of that to the goods where no real grievance has been sustained by the claimant. It is obvious that that cannot mean where there is no legal wrong, because by the hypothesis a tortious act must have been committed. It is clear, therefore, that by ‘no real grievance’ is meant no substantial grievance beyond the mere entry and seizure of the goods, such as might exist if the sheriff’s officer were guilty of insolent or oppressive conduct in excess of his duty, and not justified by the writ. The consequences of the contention for the claimant would be absurd. The sheriff cannot seize the goods without entering, and in so doing he is only doing what is absolutely necessary for the purpose of seizing the goods; but it is contended that, though in respect of the seizure he may be protected, in respect of the entry he cannot be protected. It would follow that in every case of this kind, except where he happened to seize the goods in the street, he would be liable to an action of trespass for the entry on the land, and the protection intended to be given to sheriffs by the enactments relating to interpleader would be nugatory, for in every such case there would be an action against the sheriff.’

Lord Brett MR
(1885) 14 QBD 873
Commonlii
England and Wales
Cited by:
CitedHuntress Search Ltd v Canapeum Ltd and Another QBD 28-May-2010
The court was asked whether it had been correct to refuse relief to the High Court Enforcement Officer in the form of a restraint on an interpleader when this was sought by the applicant.
Held: The test was whether there was evidence entitling . .

Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Litigation Practice

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Updated: 01 November 2021; Ref: scu.416220