Catalogue description Court of King's Bench: Plea Side: Panella Billarum Files

This series was an offshoot from the Brevia Billarum series (KB 151), from which the jury process and panels were removed at Michaelmas 1571 to create it. The files vary greatly in size, because the bulk of the material consisted of cases which went to nisi prius hearings at the Lent or Summer assizes. The preceding files to those sessions, for Hilary and Trinity terms respectively were therefore large, with the Easter and Michaelmas terms smaller. At Hilary 1591 the Hilary and Trinity files were remodelled, with the creation of 39 coverless files for Trinity term and 36 for Hilary term, one from each county plus one more for distraints in all counties; there were three fewer files for Hilary because the three northern counties had no Lent assizes. Michaelmas and Easter files continued in the original form, restyled as Venire Facias files. Some cities that were of county status had their own occasional files, and some were included in their appropriate county files. Very few files survive later than 1631.

Panels and jury process earlier than Michelmas term 1571 will be found in KB 151