He received and determined complaints about acts
or breaches of the peace within twelve miles around the King's
person or "verge". He was assisted by the marshall in the "court
of the hall" and by the clerk of the market when imposing fines
for trading regulation violations in the "court of the market".
Ecclesiastical courts were successful in their competition with
the secular courts for jurisdiction over testamentary matters
[concerning wills] and succession [no will] to chattels.
There were local courts of the vill, borough, manor, hundred,
county, sheriff, escheator, and royal bailiff, with overlapping
jurisdictions. The county court in its full session, that is, as
it attended the itinerant justices on their visitation, contained
the archbishops, bishops, priors, earls, barons, knights, and
freeholders, and from each township four men and the reeve, and
from each borough twelve burgesses. It was still the folkmote, the
general assembly of the people. In 1293, suitors who could not
spend 40s. a year within their county were not required to attend
their county court.
The most common plea in the hundred court was trespass. It also
heard issues concerning services arising out of land, detention of
chattels, small debts, wounding or maiming of animals, and
personal assaults and brawls not amounting to felony. It met every
three weeks. The sheriff held his turn twice a year and viewed
frankpledge once a year.
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