As a widow, a woman is allowed to have her "marriage portion and inheritance" immediately after her husband's death and will not have to pay a fee to the Crown and the Church. However, the widow can remain in her husband's house for only forty days and "within this period her dower shall be assigned to her." This dower is financial support which originates via the income received from the husband's property during their marriage. Apparently, once this dower is paid to the widow, she must vacate her husband's house and find someplace else to live which then allows other heirs, being males, to take over the property. Certainly, this is a form of blatant discrimination based on sex and gender and is slanted for the financial gain and security of the...

In #'s 10 and 11, we find more instances of rampant discrimination. For instance, if a person borrows money from a Jew and then dies, the Jew is not entitled to any interest from his heirs "for so long as he remains under age." Even worse, if a man dies owing money to a Jew, "his wife may have her dower and pay nothing towards the debt," thus leaving the Jewish lender out in the cold.
Bibliography

McSmith, Andy. "The Big Question: What was the Magna Carta and Are Its Contents Relevant to Us Today?" The Independent UK. December 19, 2007, 23.

The Text of the Magna Carta." British Library Board. 1995. Internet. Retrieved October 22, 2008 at http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/magnacarta.html.