Duels to settle Legal Disputes

The term 'duel' is used as a general term concerning the settling of a legal dispute. This is not restricted to physical duels, however, and can be used to refer to any kind of negotiation regarding the official settling of a dispute. Law firms have a particular culture of pride in their negotiating tactics, debating for hours over what the accused are willing to give up to settle the dispute, whether it is monetary or otherwise. However, physical duels do still occur, often when the accuser is in a favoured position to win.
The accuser will outline their duel requirements, and once signed by both parties, this is binding and final. Culturally and legally, the matter is considered settled once the duel is over, and may not be 're-trialed'.

History

Duels to preserve honour originally came from the upper classes, but have since been integrated into common law in both Kaun and Tyro.

Execution

Lawyer firms are commonly employed to deal with the challenge of a duel in response to a law misdemeanor. The victim of such a crime must choose to prosecute, and will employ a law firm to notify the accused, who will in turn (with exceptions) employ their own Lawyer.

Armed duels

At the choice (and with the weapon of choice) of the offended party, the duel will be fought to a number of conclusions:

• To first blood, in which case the duel will be ended as soon as one man is wounded, even if the wound was minor.
• Until one man is so severely wounded as to be physically unable to continue the duel.
• To the death in which case there can be no satisfaction until one party was mortally wounded.
• In the case of pistolet duels, each party would fire one shot. If neither man was hit and if the challenger stated that he was satisfied, the duel would be declared over. If the challenger is not satisfied, a pistolet duel could continue until one man is wounded or killed, but to have more than three exchanges of fire is considered barbaric and, on the rare occasion that no hits are achieved, somewhat ridiculous.

Observance

It is worth noting that Tyro makes somewhat of a spectacle out of its Lawyer Duels. People will flock to see rival law firms going loggerheads over a particular case, with scathing rebuttals tearing the air apart. Armed duels are a welcome and exciting spectacle, with large bets often placed on the nominated fighters. 
In Kaun , there is far less of a sporting vibe, but Lawyer Duels are still an object of 'entertainment', though more that of watching a bar fight than an athletic achievement. Kaun's Magical Police Enforcement watch on from the sidelines, keeping the 'peace' and subtly making their own bets. The Gangs of Kaun also offer a similar 'referee' type service to the more backstreet-type duels.