ROLL, in law, signifies a schedule or parchment which may be rolled up by the hand into the form of a pipe.
In these schedules of parchment, all the pleadings, memorials, and acts of court, are entered and filed by the proper officer; which being done, they become records of the court. Of these there are in the exchequer several kinds, as the great wardrobe roll, the cosserer's roll, the subsidy-roll, &c.
Roll is also used for a list of the names of persons of the same condition, or of those who have entered into the same engagement. Thus a court-roll of a manor, is that in which the names, rents, and services, of each tenant are copied and enrolled.
Calves-head Roll, a roll in the two temples, in which every bencher is taxed yearly at 2 s. every barrister at 1 s. 6 d. and every gentleman under the bar at 1 s. to the cook and other officers of the house, in consideration of a dinner of calves-heads provided in Easter-term.
Mustard-Roll, that in which are entered the soldiers of every troop, company, regiment, &c. As soon as a soldier's name is written down on the roll, it is death for him to desert.
Rolls-Office, is an office in Chancery-lane, London, appointed for the custody of the rolls and records in chancery.
Master of the Rolls. See MASTER of the Rolls.
Rider-Roll, a schedule of parchment frequently fewed or added to some part of a roll or record.
Rolls of Parliament, are the manuscript registers or rolls of the proceedings of our ancient parliaments, which before the invention of printing were all engrossed on parchment, and proclaimed openly in every county. In these rolls are also contained a great many decisions of difficult points of law, which were frequently in former times referred to the decision of that high court.