Edward I remodeled the law in response to grievances and to problems which came up in the courts. The changes improved the efficiency of justice and served to accommodate it to the changing circumstances of the social system.
"No man by force of arms, malice or menacing shall disturb anyone in making free election [of sheriffs, coroners, conservators of the peace by freeholders of the county]."
"No city, borough, town, nor man shall be amerced without reasonable cause and according to the severity of his trespass. That is, every freeman saving his freehold, a merchant saving his merchandise, a villein saving his wainage [implements of agriculture], and that by his peers."
No distress shall be taken of ploughing-cattle or sheep.
No loan shall be made for interest.
If an heir who is a minor is married off without the consent of the guardian, the value of the marriage will be lost and the wrongdoer imprisoned. If anyone marries off an heir over 14 years of age without the consent of the guardian, the guardian shall have double the value of the marriage. Moreover, anyone who has withdrawn a marriage shall pay the full value thereof to the guardian for the trespass and make amends to the King. And if a lord refuses to marry off a female heir of full age and keep her unmarried because he covets the land, then he shall not have her lands more than two years after she reaches full age, at which time she can recover her inheritance without giving anything for the wardship or her marriage. However, if she maliciously refuses to be married by her lord, he may hold her land and inheritance until she is the age of a male heir, that is, 21 years old and further until he has taken the value of the marriage.
Aid to make one's son a knight or marry off his daughter of a whole knight's fee shall be taken 20s., and 400s. [yearly income from] land held in socage 20s. [5%], and of more, more; and of less, less; after the rate. And none shall levy such aid to make his son a knight until his son is 15 years old, nor to marry his daughter until she is seven year old.
The common law of inheritance for land has assumed its final form with six rules. 1) A living descendant excludes his or her own descendants. 2) A dead descendant is represented by his or her own descendants. 3) Males exclude females of equal degree. 4) Among males of equal degree, only the eldest inherits. 6) The rule that a dead descendant is represented by his or her descendants overrides the preference for the male sex. If there were no descendants, the land escheated to its lord.
By statute, a conveyance of land which is the inheritance of a minor child by his guardian or lord to another is void.
Dower shall not abate because the widow has received dower of another man unless part of the first dower received was of the same tenant and in the same town. But a woman who leaves her husband for another man is barred from dower.