Doctors' Commons

Papers relating to the business of the court, and cases heard within it.

Doctors' Commons, the association or college of ecclesiastical lawyers founded in 1511 and situated in Knightrider Street, London, was dissolved following the Court of Probate Act, 1857. Its records were dispersed, but most of those that survive are in the Library.

For its building, see: E A Pickard and E Jeffries Davis, 'The Rebuilding of Doctors' Commons, 1666-72', London Topographical Record (1931), xv, 51-77 [Lambeth Palace Library KA687.D6]. This volume also includes other information and images on Doctors' Commons.

Note that 'Doctors' Commons' is more loosely used to refer to the various courts (including ecclesiastical courts such as the Court of Arches, also including the Prerogative Court of Canterbury) in which members of the Society practised, or the geographical area around Great Knightrider Street in which the officers of the courts had their offices.

For further information see the 'London Encyclopedia' [Lambeth Palace Library ref: KA679.L6(W3) [R] ]. There is further background available in the published work by G.D. Squibb, 'Doctors' Commons. A history of the College of advocates and doctors of law' (1977) [Lambeth Palace Library ref: OC341.S7 [R] ]. For Doctors' Commons more generally, see 'Old and New London: Volume 1', originally published by Cassell, Petter & Galpin, London, 1878, see pp. 281-293, available online: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol1/pp281-293

Open

Descriptions available on the National Archives Discovery site < http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk> as well as the Library catalogue.

Obselete numbers / New numbers [DC]:

SR 136 Register of Doctors' Commons DC/1

V 1482-4 Leases DC/8 (Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's); DC/9 remainder

V 1485 Case Papers, 1656 DC/3

V 1486 Case Papers, 1720 DC/4

V 1487 Case Papers, 1756 DC/5

V 1488 Miscellaneous estate paper - poor rate DC/6

Papers in alphabetical sequence relating to 1656 case have been added to rest of the series in DC/3

V 1489 Building repairs - surveyors' reports - all these from this box and 1490 have been collected together. DC/10, DC/11

V 1490 Draft leases added to rest of leases DC/9

Miscellanea - trophy tax DC/7

Vouchers added to rest of vouchers DC/26

Correspondence and papers DC/12

Miscellaneous accounts DC/27

V 1491 Treasurers' Accounts, 1679-1730 DC/13

V 1492 Treasurers' Accounts, 1767-1838 DC/14

V 1493 Treasurers' Accounts, 1839-1865 DC/15

V 1494 Term Fees - Judges and Advocates, 1679-1730 DC/16

V 1495 Term Fees - Judges and Advocates, 1788-1809 DC/17

V 1496 Term Fees - Judges and Advocates, 1809-1842 DC/18

V 1497 Term Fees - Judges and Advocates, 1842-1864 DC/19

V 1498 Proctors' Term Fees, 1767-1838 DC/20

V 1499 Proctors' Term Fees, 1839-1858 DC/21

V 1500 Rent Book, 1767-1830 DC/22

V 1501 Income Book, 1730-1752 DC/23

V 1502 Lee Fund Accounts, 1844-1865. DC/24

V 1503 Commons Book, 1743-1778. DC/25

V 1504-9 Vouchers DC/26

V 1509a Minutes of meetings, 1828-1865. DC/2

On a transfer of records from Doctors' Commons to the Record Room at Lambeth Palace in the time of Archbishop Potter [1737-47] see MS 1163 f. 86r.

Various material in other Library collections e.g. MS 1560, MS 2876.

Image of Doctors' Common at Lambeth Palace Library Prints XXVII/20. A digital copy is available via the online image management system:

http://images.lambethpalacelibrary.org.uk/luna/servlet/s/ac0d77

In other repositories:

National Archives, PRO 30/28.

Cambridge University Library: Doctors' Commons, London: Trinity Hall Leases and Legal Papers (ref: MS.Add.9266).

Some images appear in the COLLAGE database at London Metropolitan Archives: http://collage.cityoflondon.gov.uk