| Content Description | See Pl L1 - L8 below for more detail.
Messrs Baileys, Shaw and Gillett of 5 Berners Street, London, were solicitors to the Dukes of Portland from the mid-1830s. Until that time the legal business of the Dukes had been carried out by agents in London, corresponding with stewards on the Dukes' estates. The records in this series were deposited by Baileys, Shaw and Gillett and include material inherited by them from the Dukes' agents in London.
The largest legal case in this series is the Druce case, a lengthy and complex series of lawsuits concerning the late 5th Duke of Portland's supposed double life as a certain Mr Druce, the proprietor of a furniture emporium in Baker Street.
The remainder of the series is made up of other litigation papers involving the 6th Duke of Portland, his family and servants, general correspondence with Messrs Baileys, Shaw and Gillett (and their predecessors) extending back to the mid-19th century, a small group of private and confidential correspondence with Messrs Baileys, Shaw and Gillett, and miscellaneous legal papers, parliamentary papers and accounts.
Legal cases and litigation relating to particular estates held by the Dukes of Portland can be found in the appropriate sections of the Estate Papers, Pl E. Wills, settlements, mortgages and other legal papers relating to the family finances can be found in the Family and Financial Papers, Pl F. |