Mainprise is a concept in

English law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, be ...

regarding the release of a prisoner from custody upon

sureties In finance, a surety , surety bond or guaranty involves a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults. Usually, a surety bond or surety is a promise by a surety or guarantor to pay ...

pending

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of Party (law), parties to a :wikt:dispute, dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence (law), evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to Adjudication, adjudicate claims or d ...

. It is nearly identical to the concept of

bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countries ...

and has been absorbed into the laws regulating bail in many jurisdictions. When they were distinguished, bail was not restricted in the type of surety upon which a prisoner could be released, while mainprise always involved a specified sum of money. A prisoner released on bail was still technically in custody and could be re-seized, while one delivered on mainprise was no longer in custody and could not have suits brought against him as though he were. Matthew Hale, ''

Historia Placitorum Coronae Historia may refer to: * Historia, the local version of the History channel in Spain and Portugal * Historia (TV channel), a Canadian French language specialty channel * Historia (newspaper), a French monthly newspaper devoted to History topics * ...

'' (London, 1736), 124–25
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References

English criminal law Imprisonment and detention {{law-term-stub