This book has been a long time in the making, and it is a pleasure to acknowledge here some of the many people who have helped me along the way, although I alone am responsible for all errors and interpretations.

My greatest debt is to S. H. Brooks, who did so much to make it possible for me to undertake the project, and who has always managed to combine patient encouragement with trenchant criticism. Professor S. F. C. Milsom aided my early attempts to learn something about legal history. Professor J. S. Cockburn has been a constant and valued source of friendship and advice. Mr C. A. F. Meekings kindly passed on to me some of his vast knowledge of King's Bench records. Mr Philip Styles helped me to see how the resources of local record offices could be used to illuminate the activities of attorneys. Dr J. H. Baker, Mr C. S. L. Davies, and Dr K. M. Sharpe read through earlier drafts of the work and made many valuable points about the content and the way it was expressed. I am particularly grateful to Dr P. H. Williams for his very generous help at a number of difficult stages as this project progressed from an Oxford doctoral dissertation to a book. Also I thank the examiners of my thesis, Drs G. E. Aylmer and E. W. Ives, for their careful reading and helpful comments on that work.