Legal Definitions - commission of review

A commission of review was an authorization granted in England to review a judgment of the Court of Delegates in extraordinary cases. It was no longer used after 1832 when the Privy Council replaced the Court of Delegates as the appellate court in ecclesiastical cases.

The Court of Delegates was a court serving as the final court of appeal for admiralty and ecclesiastical matters in England. It was established in 1534 to replace the Papal Curia when the English Church severed its ties with the Papacy. The Court was composed of six delegates appointed to hear only one case, usually three persons trained in common law and three in civil law. However, the mixture of delegates led to confused rulings and unreliable precedents that hindered the Court's credibility and ultimately led to its dissolution in 1833. Its jurisdiction was transferred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

For example, the Court of Delegates was abolished because its members were only paid a guinea a day, and it was usually composed of junior civilians. This led to dissatisfaction with its working and the transfer of its jurisdiction to the Privy Council.