''Dimes v Grand Junction Canal'' (1852) was a case heard by the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

. The

case Case or CASE may refer to: Containers * Case (goods), a package of related merchandise * Cartridge case or casing, a firearm cartridge component * Bookcase, a piece of furniture used to store books * Briefcase or attaché case, a narrow box to ca ...

addresses the point that "

Judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

s must not appear to be

bias Bias is a disproportionate weight ''in favor of'' or ''against'' an idea or thing, usually in a way that is closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Biases can be innate or learned. People may develop biases for or against an individual, a group ...

ed". Lord Cottenham presided over a previous case in which a canal company brought a case in equity against a landowner. Lord Cottenham was later discovered to have had

shares In financial markets, a share is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation, and can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Share capital refers to all of the shares of ...

in said company. The verdict stated that although there was no suggestion that the

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had in fact been influenced by his interest in the company, no case should be decided by a judge with a financial

interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distin ...

in the outcome. It was held that the Lord Chancellor was disqualified from sitting as a judge in the case because he had an interest in the action.

References

''Dimes v Grand Junction Canal'' (1852) sixthformlaw.infoPdf document regarding a speech by Lord Cambell in the house of lords and certain facts regarding the House of Lords case.
House of Lords cases 1852 in case law 1852 in British law English law articles needing infoboxes {{UK-law-stub