Originally published in 1922, this book examines legal statutes and their interpretation in English courts during the reigns of Edward I, II and III.

General preface H. D. Hazeltine; Author's preface; Table of statutes; Table of year book cases; Sources; List of incipits; Introduction. The problem and the evidence; Part I. Legislation and Legal Thought in the Early Fourteenth Century: 1. Origins and early forms of written law; 2. Text and translation; 3. The legislature and its place; 4. Statutes and the common law; 5. Statutes and ordinances; 6. Legal thought; Part II. Examples of Interpretation: 1. General words and literal construction; 2. The intention of the legislature; 3. 'Exceptions out of the statute'; 4. Refusal of the courts to apply statutes; 5. Extension of the words of a statute; 6. Strict interpretation; 7. Conflicts of statutes; 8. Ignorance of statutes among contemporary lawyers; 9. The retrospective effect of statutes; 10. Judicial discretion; 11. Statutes and the common law; 12. Statutes and the royal prerogative; 13. Statutory writs; 14. The interpretation of particular statutes; Conclusion; Appendix 1. Text of statutes; Appendix 2. Select cases; Index.