Definition of Vicontiel:
“adj. (17c.) 1. Of, relating to, or involving a viscount. 2. Of, relating to, or involving a sheriff. – Also termed visountiel. – Also termed vice-comital.”[1]
Vicontiel Writ:
“(18c.) Hist. A writ triable in the county court. In the 13th-14th centuries, civil litigation could originate in the county court either by oral plaint or by a writ from the Chancery ordering the sheriff to do justice in a case. The writ that began such a proceeding was called vicontiel because it was addressed to the sheriff.”
Excerpt from George Crompton’s Practice Common-Placed: Rules and Cases of Practice in the Courts of King’s Bench and Common Pleas:
“Vicontiel writs were of two sorts, the one founded on Torts, the other on Contracts. The vicontiel writs adapted for torts, were those of trespass, replegiari facias (aka “Writ of Replevin”), nuisance, & others of the like nature; & those of matters of contract were called writs of justice, which was a command to the sheriff to do justice between the parties….”[2]
Writs Adapted for Torts:
References:
[1]: All definitions from: Black’s Law Dictionary Deluxe Tenth Edition by Henry Campbell Black & Editor in Chief Bryan A. Garner. ISBN: 978-0-314-62130-6
[2]: