the Master's office, and interrupted the business there, was dismissed, and a reference was directed to the Master for the appointment of a new committee (p).

Bankruptcy of the committee of the person of a lunatic is a sufficient cause for removing him, on account of the fund for maintenance; but the custody of the person is not always changed on that account; but it will be referred to the Master to appoint another committee, in order that he may consider the particular circumstances of the case, and the propriety of continuing the custody, having regard to the comfort of the lunatic (q).

The Court will not remove a committee of the person, merely on the ground of his having become a bankrupt, whether he has obtained his certificate or not; even where he has obtained his certificate, and, possessing no other funds than those which are given for the maintenance of the lunatic, is under a temptation to appropriate them to his own benefit, still the Court will not change the custody of the person of the lunatic, unless it be impracticable otherwise to secure his maintenance. For, the Court in such cases has a species of control over the funds, and the true subject of consideration is, whether such committee has done what is required for the comfort of the lunatic, which in many cases is best promoted by not changing the custody of his person. And, therefore, on a petition to remove a committee, on the ground that he had become a bankrupt, an inquiry was directed whether the comfort of the lunatic had been sufficiently provided for, regard being had to the sum allowed (r).

The bankruptcy of the committee of the estate of a lunatic is a sufficient ground for removal. Thus, in a case where such a committee had been declared a bankrupt, it was ordered that he should be discharged from the office, and from acting in any manner in the affairs of the lunatic, and that the bankrupt should pass his accounts before the Master, when his assignees were to be at liberty to at(r) Ex parte Proctor, 1 Swanst.

(p) Ex parte Jones, 13 Ves. 237. (q) Ex parte Mildmay, 3 Ves. jun. 2.

531.

tend, and the balance to be found due was ordered to be paid into Court, upon which his recognizance was to be vacated; and in default of such payment, it was referred to the Master to inquire and certify whether any proceedings should be taken against the bankrupt and his sureties, for obtaining payment of such balance; and the Master was directed to inquire who were the most proper persons to be appointed committees of the estate in the place of the bankrupt (s).

Sometimes, the bankrupt committee of the estate is suspended from the office until he shall have obtained his certificate. Thus, in a case where a committee of the estate of a lunatic had been made a bankrupt, and was indebted to the lunatic's estate in a large sum of money-Lord Chancellor Lyndhurst ordered the committee to be suspended from the committeeship of the lunatic's estate, and from all interference therewith, until he should obtain his certificate, on receiving which he was to be at liberty to apply to resume such committeeship; and the Master was ordered to appoint a proper person to be receiver of the lunatic's estate in the mean time, with a reasonable salary, on giving security; and it was ordered that the committee should proceed to complete the passing his accounts, and that the receiver should prosecute the orders made for passing such accounts; and it was referred to the Master to inquire if any and what proceedings were necessary and proper to be taken for recovering what was due to the lunatic's estate from the committee (t). Afterwards, on the petition of two of the next of kin of the lunatic, the assignees of the bankrupt were ordered to deposit in the Master's office, upon oath, all such deeds, papers, and writings in their custody or power, as related exclusively to the estate of the lunatic, and to the accounts of the bankrupt as the committee of his estate. And the bankrupt was ordered to be examined upon interrogatories, as the Master should think fit, touching a particular farm, and the estate and interest of the lunatic therein, and the rents and profits thereof received by

(s) In re Barrow, 20 June, 1827. (t) In re Chambers, 15 April, 1826.

the bankrupt, and as to the accounts of the lunatic's estates generally; and the petitioners were to be at liberty to charge the bankrupt with such proportion of the rents and profits of such farm as the Master should find to be due from him to the estate of the lunatic in respect thereof, and in respect of certain other sums therein mentioned. And the Master was to be at liberty to fix a period within which the bankrupt was to vouch and pass his accounts before the Master; and, in default, the Master was directed to look into the state of the accounts and certify what balance appeared to be due from the bankrupt to the estate of the lunatic (u).

The committee's going to reside permanently out of the jurisdiction of the Court seems to be a sufficient cause for removing him (v). But where only a temporary absence of the committee of the person and estate is contemplated, it may be referred to the Master to approve of a proper person to be intrusted with the care of the lunatic during such absence (w).

A party may apply to the Lord Chancellor, by petition, to be discharged from the office of committee; whereupon it will be referred to the Master to take and pass his accounts of the receipts and payments on account of the lunatic and his estate, from the foot of the last account; and an order will be made that, after payment of the taxed costs and reasonable allowances of the committee and next of kin of the lunatic, the balance to be found due from such committee be paid into the name of the Accountant-General of the Court of Chancery, and thereupon that the committee may be discharged from his committeeship, and the recognizance entered into by him and his sureties cancelled; and it will also be referred to the Master to appoint another committee in the place of the one who has been discharged, of which notice must be given to the next of kin of the lunatic (x). And sometimes, on a petition for the appointment of new committees, it will be ordered that the custody

(u) In re Chambers, 13 Aug. 1828. (v) Ex parte Ord, Jac. Rep. 94.

(w) In re Aguilar, 22 Feb. 1823. (x) In re Yorke, 5 Aug. 1828.

of the person of the lunatic be committed to particular persons, until a new committee shall have been appointed, and directions will be given as to the custody of the lunatic in the interval (y).

SECTION IX.

Of Passing the Accounts of Committees.

THE committees of lunatics are required, from time to time, to render an account of their receipts and payments in respect of the estate of the lunatic. The Lord Chancellor refers it to the Masters in Chancery, to pass the accounts of committees, and on each particular occasion a specific order must be pronounced for the purpose (≈).

The Masters of the Court of Chancery were ordered to certify on the last seal after Trinity term, in every year, to the Lord Chancellor, Lord Keeper, or Lords Commissioners for the custody of the Great Seal, for the time being, the state of the several committees' and receivers' accounts, in their respective offices (a).

In some cases, where the property of the lunatic is small, the Court will on application dispense with the general rule requiring the committees to pass their accounts annually. In one case, where the sum annually received by the committee beyond the maintenance did not exceed 81. per annum, it was ordered that the same might, from time to time, when received by the committee, be paid into the Bank of England to the credit of the matter, (the amount to be verified by the affidavit of the committee;) and that the order

(y) In re Metcalfe, 28 Aug. 1822. (z) See forms of petitions for this purpose, in the Appendix.

(a) Order of Lords Commissioners

of the Great Seal, 25 July, 1792; Beames' Orders in Chancery, 453; and see Harr. Ch. Pr. by Newl. 386.

directing the committee to pass his accounts annually be dispensed with (c).

On an application that the committee of a lunatic might have liberty to pass his accounts, which, in consequence (as was alleged) of the smallness of the property, had not been passed since the year 1823-Lord Chancellor Lyndhurst granted leave in that case; but said, that, whenever from any cause it is found inexpedient to pass the accounts of a lunatic's estate regularly, an application ought to be made, in the first instance, for liberty to dispense with the general rule, and the Court would then exercise its discretion on the subject (d).

In other cases, it has been referred to the Master to consider of the propriety of passing altogether the accounts of committees of the estates of lunatics for several years; and they have been ordered to be passed accordingly, if the Master approve of such a course (e).

In another case, where it appeared that the property of the lunatic consisted only of 7711. 7s., 3 per cent. Bank Annuities, and 8891., 3 per cent. Bank Annuities; and that the expense of passing the accounts annually before the Master amounted to the sum of 167.; and that it would be for the benefit of the lunatic, if the whole dividends of his stock were allowed for his maintenance-On the petition of the committee of the person and estate of the lunatic, it was ordered that so much of a former order, as directed the accounts to be passed annually, should be dispensed with, and that the whole of the annual dividends of the stock belonging to the lunatic should be paid to the committee from time to time, as the same became payable, for the maintenance of the lunatic until further order (ƒ).

his

The committee will not, in general, be suffered to pass accounts without referring it to the Master, to see what balances of money belonging to the lunatic have been retain

(c) Ex parte Pickard, 3 Ves. & Bea. 127; In re Stephenson, Aug.

1814.

(e) In re Robinson, 28 Nov. 1828; In re James, 3 April, 1828.

(f) In re Scarpelain, 22 May,

(d) Anon. 1 Russ. & Mylne, 113. 1830.