She could not make contracts or incur debts without his approval. Nor could she sue or be sued in a court of law. Only the extremely wealthy were exempted from these laws: Under the rules of equity, a portion of a married woman's property could be set aside in the form of a trust for her use or the use of her children. However, the legal costs involved in establishing trusts made them unavailable to the vast majority of the population.
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One important woman taking up the cause was Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon (1827-1891). She actively promoted women's rights and in 1854 published A Brief Summary of the Laws in England concerning Women: together with a few observations thereon. She campained to reform married women's property laws. In 1865, she founded the women-only Kensington Society for which she wrote Reasons for the Enfranchisement of Women in 1866.