Master of Laws

**Master of Laws** is a title granted to the chief advisor to the ruling monarch of the Seven Kingdoms on matters relating to the laws of the land and the administration of justice. The occupant of this office has a seat on the small council.

## Role

When the various kings of Westeros bent the knee to Aegon the Conqueror, the newly-crowned King of the Seven Kingdoms agreed to let local laws set down by those ruling his new lands be as they was as means to show due respect and thus muster the support from his new subjects. Although they entered the fold later, Dorne, as an example, are still bound by Dornish laws. As such, while dispensing justice might appear a simple matter when a Lord takes the hand or the head of a criminal, the truth is that the legal process of the Seven Kingdoms can be incredibly complex when it comes to ruling the kingdom in a just, fair manner, as it requires the King or Queen to take heed to the laws and customs from more than a dozen regions, many of which could be vague, uncodified, subject to varying interpretations, and often even contradictory. A (responsible) King would naturally want his decisions to be well balanced and in accordance with tradition and law.  As such, it falls to the Master of Laws to be aware of how all these laws interact and which laws applies where in order to advise the king accordingly, as well as assisting the Hand of the King in an advisory capacity when they draw up the King's laws to make sure they do not disregard local laws of this region or that region without due cause. The City Watch of King's Landing presumably also falls under his purview, meaning that when a criminal were apprehended in the city, the (Lord) Commander of the City Watch would bring the matter to the attention of the Master of Laws, who would dispense justice as they saw fit with the evidence at hand.

## Duties

Duties of the master of laws include:

* Advising the King on the dispensing of justice by informing him on predence, law, and custom.
* Preparing and maintaining royal documents, such as pardons, grants, and bills of attainder.
* Managing the dungeons at the Red Keep and supervising the King's Justice and the City Watch.
* Oversees whatever other judicial offices and positions there might be in the royal bureaucracy.
* Speak with the Master of Coin to agree upon matters such as fees and taxation laws. (Presumably).
* Speaks justice in the name of the Crown in the absence of the King and/or his Hand. (Presumably).
* It is likely to be customary for the Master of Laws to reside as one of the seven judges during trials.
* The Master of Laws might also serve as the King's ambassador for settling far-flung disputes of nobility.
* Hold court and listen to petitions, accusations and dispense justice for the Smallfolk in King's Landing. (Presumably, as leaving them to their own devices might cause a sense of neglect and spark rebellion or conflict.)

## History

Lord Triston Massey served as Master of Laws to King Aegon I Targaryen.

Lord Jasper Wylde was a Master of Laws during the Dance of the Dragons. He was executed by Rhaenyra Targaryen, as he sided with King Aegon II Targaryen.

## Books

### *A Game of Thrones*

Lord Renly Baratheon was Master of Laws for his brother, King Robert I Baratheon.

### *A Clash of Kings*

Renly vacates his position to push his own claim on the throne. His other brother, Stannis Baratheon, offers to name Renly as his Master of Laws if Renly supports his claim, but the offer is refused. After the Battle of the Blackwater, Ser Kevan Lannister was named as Master of Laws to King Joffrey I Baratheon.

### *A Feast for Crows*

After the death of Lord Tywin Lannister, his daughter, Queen Regent Cersei Lannister, renames the position as justiciar, after the style in the Free Cities. Ser Kevan abandons the position, and is replaced by Lord Orton Merryweather. He flees the city after Cersei's arrest by the Faith of the Seven.

### *A Dance with Dragons*

Lord Randyll Tarly is named as the new justiciar for King Tommen I Baratheon.