Statute of Frauds 1677

Timeline

1. 1677Palace of Westminster · LondonIn 17th-century England courts frequently saw fraud cases based on perjured claims of oral contracts; under pressure for legal reform Parliament drafted and passed the Statute of Frauds, requiring land transactions, testamentary inheritance, leases exceeding three years, and surety contracts to be recorded in writing and signed by the parties to be legally binding.
2. 1678–1800England · EnglandAfter the Statute of Frauds was enacted, English courts gradually interpreted the elements of 'writing' and 'signature' through numerous cases, forming a body of case law centered on the part performance exception; the North American colonies and, after independence, the US states successively cited and localized the statute, extending its influence across the entire Anglo-American legal world.