1847 OH Bastardy Suit Terminology
In a bastardy suit, what does the term "by next friend" mean? Does this mean the person is not related? The term is used several times in reference to Henry Terk within the bastardy suit and in six weeks of newspaper announcements as well. The suit was against the person she divorced.
Full statement: Judges of the Court of Common Pleas of Hocking County Ohio ___
Chancery setting, your petitioner Polly Hiest by her next friend Henry
Terk your said petitioner being a bonafide resident of the County of
Hocking and who has for more than one year prior to this her appli-
cation for Divorce and Alimony resided in the state of Ohio.
Best Answer
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I did send your question to the legalgenealogist URL indicated above. Judy Russell responded as follows:
"Down and dirty answer to a question I'll snag for the future for the blog: Ohio didn't pass its first married women's property act until 1860, so any married woman -- even one suing for divorce -- was legally disqualified from acting on her own behalf. Like a child or an incompetent, she had to be represented by a next friend. That was usually a male relative but could be any man of her acquaintance. Only after the MWPAs began to be adopted by the state's did married women get the right to sue and be sued in their own right."
That is an interesting answer but it make sense. Since your question was about the year 1847 in Ohio, it appears from the above information from Judy Russell that Polly Hiest would need her next friend Henry to represent her in this situation and act in her behalf.
We are always learning new things. I hope that helps.
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Answers
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Your question will be forwarded to another specialty team that will be better able to answer your question. We will send this to the Search team as they will probably know the answer to your question.
Another idea is to do a google search for what does "by next friend" mean in a legal context in the state of Ohio. Here is something that may help. Please note that there may different definitions by State.
Hopefully this will assist you.
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If the mother was of age, she would not be able to act on behalf of the child so needed a 'friend'? Would the mom, who was competent not be considered for legal representation of her own child.
Is the 'friend' typically a relative or can they just be a close acquaintance?
Thank you! I had Googled it but was still unclear about relationships. Was just hoping for more detailed info.
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Have you asked Judy Russell, aka The Legal Genealogist ? This is just the sort of thing she is knowledgeable about. See her blog: https://www.legalgenealogist.com/ and note the 'Ask TLG" page at the top right.
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Awesome! Thank you so much!
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