Habeas Corpus Act 1640


The Habeas Corpus Act 1640 was an Act of the Parliament of England.
The Act was passed by the Long Parliament shortly after the impeachment and execution of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford in 1641 and before the English Civil War. It abolished the Star Chamber. It also declared that anyone imprisoned by order of the king, privy council, or any councillor could apply for a writ of habeas corpus, required that all returns to the writ "certify the true cause" of imprisonment, and clarified that the Court of Common Pleas also had jurisdiction to issue the writ in such cases.
The writ was amended by the Habeas Corpus Act 1679.
The words of commencement were repealed by section 1 of, and Schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1948.
The whole Act, so far as not otherwise repealed, was repealed by section 8 of, and Part I of Schedule 5 to, the Justices of the Peace Act 1968.

Preamble

In the preamble, the words from "and by another Statute made in the six and thirtieth" to "inrolled in Latine" were repealed by section 1 of, and Schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1948.

Section 2

This section, from "be it" to "enacted" was repealed by section 1 of, and Part I of the Schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1888.

Section 4

This section, from "be it" to "enacted" was repealed by section 1 of, and Part I of the Schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1888.

Section 6

This section, from "be it" to "enacted that" was repealed by section 1 of, and Part I of the Schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1888.
This section was repealed by section 8 of, and Part II of Schedule 5 to, the Justices of the Peace Act 1968.

Section 7

In this section, the words "and be it enacted" were repealed by section 1 of, and Part I of the Schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1888.

Section 8

This section, from "lastly" to "enacted that" was repealed by section 1 of, and Part I of the Schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1888.