Anthony Musson
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The personnel of justice
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The extracts in this chapter cover the personnel of justice. The task of law enforcement and the staffing of the legal system required a large number of full-time and part-time officials, ranging from the royal judges of the central courts down to village constables. There was a general impression that judges and lawyers made considerable sums from their professional activities. This perception may have elements of truth, but masks some of the realities of royal judicial service: there was a profound shift during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries from clerical to lay justices, which altered the way in which their service could be rewarded. Royal justices had sworn oaths before taking office since at least the thirteenth century. Much of the day-to-day lesser work in the field of criminal justice was carried out by lower-ranking officials working in the hundreds and townships.

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