Breakin' the Law
Multiple Jurisdictions
Most any crime had multiple courts that had authority. Not like today with a clear hierarchy of jurisdictions.
For those with money, you could hire lawyers who could keep a case in play for years. Court cases could become like investments, handed down from one generation to the next.
Also meant that people could be victimized, getting prosecuted first by one court then by another. The chief difference between then and now is that these various jurisdictions saw themselves as having competing authority.