Legal Definitions - de anno bissextili

DE ANNO BISSEXTILI

De anno bissextili is a law that was introduced during the reign of Henry III. It advised the justices of the bench that in a case requiring something to be done within a year, the leap-year day and the day before should be counted as one day.

For example, if a contract was signed on February 28, 2020, and it stated that the work should be completed within a year, then the deadline would be February 28, 2021. However, if 2020 was a leap year, then the deadline would be February 29, 2021, because the leap-year day and the day before would be counted as one day.

Another example would be if a person had a year to file a lawsuit, and the deadline was February 28, 2021. If 2020 was a leap year, then the deadline would be February 29, 2021, because the leap-year day and the day before would be counted as one day.

These examples illustrate how de anno bissextili was used to ensure that deadlines were met and that justice was served.