Master

Master in United Kingdom

Definition

Master (Lat. magister, related to magis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maître; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro), one holding a position of authority, disposition or control over persons or things. The various applications of the word fall roughly into the following main divisions; as the title of the holder of a position of command or authority; as that of the holder of certain public or private offices, and hence a title of address; and as implying the relationship of a teacher to his pupils or of an employer to the persons he employs. (1)

History

As a title of the holder of an office, the use of the Lat. magister is very ancient. Magister equitum, master of the horse, goes back to the early history of the Roman Republic (see Dictator; and for the British office, Master of the Horse). In medieval times the title was of great frequency. In Du Cange (Glossarium) the article magister contains over 120 sub-headings. In the British royal household most of the offices bearing this title are now obsolete. Of the greater offices, that of master of the buckhounds was abolished by the Civil List Act 1901. The master of the household, master of the ceremonies, master of the king’s music still survive. Since 1870 the office of master of the mint has been held by the chancellor of the exchequer, all the administrative and other duties being exercised by the deputy master.

In Maritime Law

At sea, a “master” is more properly styled “master mariner.” In the merchant service he is the commander of a ship, and is by courtesy known as the captain. In the British navy he was the officer entrusted with the navigation under the captain. He had no royal commission, but a warrant from the Navy Board. Very often he had been a merchant captain. His duties are now performed by the staff commander or navigating lieutenant. The master-at-arms is the head of the internal police of a ship; the same title is borne by a senior gymnastic instructor in the army. In the United States navy, the master is a commissioned officer below the rank of lieutenant. (2)

In Law

“Master” appears as the title of many legal functionaries (for the masters of the supreme court see Chancery; and King’s Bench, Court of; for masters in lunacy, relating to law, see Insanity here, see also Master of the Rolls in this legal Encyclopedia).

The “master of the faculties” is the chief officer of the archbishop of Canterbury in his court of faculties. His duties are concerned with the appointment of notaries and the granting of special licences of marriage. The duties are performed ex officio by the judge of the provincial courts of Canterbury and York, who is also dean of Arches, in accordance with § 7 of the Public Worship 872 Regulation Act 1874. The “master of the Temple” is the title of the priest-in-charge of the Temple Church in London. It was formerly the title of the grand master of the Knights Templars. The priest-in-charge of the Templars’ Church was properly styled the custos, and this was preserved by the Knights Hospitallers when they were granted the property of the Templars at the dissolution of that order. The act of 1540 (32 Henry VIII.), which dissolved the order of the Hospitallers, wrongly styled the custos master of the Temple, and the mistake has been continued. The proper title of a bencher of the Inns of Court is “master of the Bench” (see Inns of Court). The title of “Master-General of the Ordnance” was revived in 1904 for the head of the Ordnance Department in the British military administration. (3)

Master in North Ireland

Masters are generally responsible for exercising the jurisdiction of the High Court where, by statute or under Rules of Court, jurisdiction does not fall to a judge such as assessing costs of any action in the Court of Judicature of NI.(1)

Meaning of Master

The following is an old definition of Master [1]: A person authorized to con- trol another or others in some relation, or charged with the execution of a service as an assistant to a court of equity. 1. He to whom an apprentice is indent- ured. “Master and servant” expresses the relation between the parties. See further Apprentice. 2. He who hires another to serve him as a domestic or as a common laborer; an employer. “Master and servant” expresses the relation in private life, founded in convenience, whereby a man calls in the assistance of others when his own skill and labor is not sufficient to answer the cares incumbent upon him. See further Servant. 3. Any person having the chief charge or command of the employment and navigation of a vessel. See Ship. 4. An officer of a court of chancery to whom was referred a bill alleged to contain scandalous or impertinent matter. An officer whose duty was to make inquiries, when so directed by the court, into matters which, from the constitution of the court, it could not conveniently, without assistance, make for itself, and to report to the court his findings or conclusions. Clerks, commissioners, and referees now perform many matters formerly entrusted to masters. Their chief duties are to make inquiries, take accounts, sell estates, and adjust other matters, before there can be a final disposition of a cause. A master is appointed in an equity case to sift the testimony and to collate and report the facts. He is both an examiner and master. Having heard the witnesses and familiarized himself with the case, he is competent to pass upon the credibility of witnesses and to judge of the evidence. By his being fully possessed of the case, the dispute is likely to be confined to the real grounds of the controversy. The document exhibiting his findings and conclu- sions is called his “report; ” the office of which is to present the case to the court in such a manner that intelligent action may be had; and it is this action that finally determines the rights of the parties. He must follow the directions contained in the order of his appointment. The court will review the report only as to matters specified in exceptions tiled thereto, and the parts of ,the evidence particularly referred to. It may set aside the report for manifest error in law or fact, or recommit it, if the means of correction are furnished. When, by reason of the large amount of equity business, it is impossible for a court to examine every case in detail, its attention may be brought directly to the points of the contest by a preliminary hearing before a master, who can take time to examine the case thoroughly; and report upon it intelligently and accurately. The effect is to eliminate what is undisputed, and to develop the true points of contest. The proceeding before the master develops the rights and liabilities of the parties for the court’s consideration; the party dissenting from the master’s views bringing the points into review by exceptions. What shall be referred to a master, general or special, is a matter in the discretion of the court. Properly speaking, no report is conclusive. That would be to make the judgment of an officer performing an ancillary service superior to the judgment of the court itself. When he reports facts directly proved by the witnesses, the court will give his report great weight, because of his superior opportunities for judging of the credibility of the witnesses and the effect of their testimony. But when the fact is a deduction merely from the facts reported by him, his conclusion is simply a result of reasoning, of which the court is as competent to judge as he. Hence, the report is neither a decision nor an infallible guide, but a serviceable instrumentality to aid the court in performing its own functions. See Final. The compensation of masters, whose functions are judicial, may be measured by the standard of judicial salaries. See Costs; Fee. Master of the rolls. One of the judges of the English court of chancery. He formerly had the custody of the rolls of all patents and grants which passed the great seal, and of the records of chancery. He presided in the Rolls Court, as assistant to the lord chancellor. His jurisdiction is now transferred to the supreme court of judicature.

Resources

Notes and References

  1. Concept of Master provided by the Anderson Dictionary of Law (1889) (Dictionary of Law consisting of Judicial Definitions and Explanations of Words, Phrases and Maxims and an Exposition of the Principles of Law: Comprising a Dictionary and Compendium of American and English Jurisprudence; William C. Anderson; T. H. Flood and Company, Law Publishers, Chicago, United States)

Resources

Notes and References

  1. Encyclopedia Britannica (11th Edition)
  2. Id.
  3. Id.

See Also

Further Reading


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