Have you considered why we have the laws and court system we have today? Around 1066 AD, the Normans, newly dominant in England, established a system of justice for those who felt themselves wronged to go to the court of the king to have the dispute resolved by a neutral third party. How were disputes resolved before this system? What problem, or problems, was the new system intended to solve? In what ways do arbitration and mediation as alternatives to litigation in the current courts address similar interests or problems today? I find it interesting that archaic English legal dictionaries record the following definition: FREDUM: A fine paid for obtaining pardon when the peace had been broken; a sum paid the magistrate for protection against the right of revenge; Freda was a Frankish term similar to the Saxon “wites” The following terms may be helpful in your research: Right of Revenge Blood Feud Wergild/Wite Fredum.