According to Maitland, equity is described as “That body of rules administered by our courts which, but for the operation of the Judicators Acts, would only be administered by those courts which would be known as courts of equity.” It would then have been considered a poor definition, yet at present there is no better definition, because equity is essentially, as he says, “a collection of appendices to the common law rather than a self-contained system”. In its broadest sense, equity is fairness as a legal system, it is a body of law that addresses concerns that fall outside the jurisdictions of common law. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The case of the Earl of Oxford paves the way for the development of the English legal system and would be considered the cornerstone of fairness in the modern English legal system. This case involved a plot of land in London that Henry VIII had given to Thomas Lord Audley as a reward for procuring the trial and eventual execution of Anne Boleyn. By his will Lord Audley left the land to Magdelene College, Cambridge. Who subsequently sold it and who were indirectly acquired by the Earl of Oxford Magdelene College then contested the Earl of Oxford's title to the land on the basis of a statue prohibiting the fact that, as part of the original sale, Magdelene College had carried out a immediate intention to go around the statue. Equity follows the law: While equity has not sought to set aside common law rules as such, it has limited or modified their application where it seemed fair to do so. It was an essential feature that equity did not seek to replace, much less subvert, the common law. An example of the maxim is the equitable treatment of imperfect gifs, i.e. gratuitous promises of property transfer that are not carried out. To treat the gratuitous promise as enforceable, because it would be unconscionable to allow the promisor to withdraw it, would have completely subverted the fundamental principle of the common law of contracts that consideration is essential in the case of every unsealed contract. Bear in mind: This is just one example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Equity will not be wronged without remedy: the common law has steadily begun to fail to provide an effective remedy for the violation of undoubted legal rights. The range of equitable remedies themselves was limited to those developed by courts over the centuries. The general idea was that equity was dead. However, as the Supreme Court made clear in L v L, this does not authorize the courts to create new legal or equitable rights hitherto unknown to the law, unless this is “clearly and unequivocally guaranteed by the constitution, for that would be to presuppose the role of the legislator. It is believed that this right can only be conferred by the legislator.