On 4 July 1325 he was appointed
Master of the Rolls, and after the abdication of Edward II in 1326 he was, on 17 December, directed to add his seal to that of the
Bishop of Norwich to secure the great seal. Until the appointment of Bishop Hotham of Ely as lord chancellor on the accession of
Edward III, the Bishop of Norwich and Cliff discharged the chancellor's duties. For some dispute with Thomas de Cherleton,
Bishop of Hereford, in connection with the presentation to the
prebend of Blebury in
Salisbury Cathedral he incurred the penalty of
excommunication, in regard to which, within a month of his accession, and again in the following March, Edward III personally wrote letters on his behalf. The great seal continued to be often entrusted to him. From the resignation of John de Hotham to the appointment of
Henry Burghersh,
Bishop of Lincoln (1 March to 12 May 1328), he held it along with William de Herlaston, and during absences of Burghersh it was in his custody again in 1328 (1–30 July and 17–26 August), and in 1329 (31 May – 11 June). He was similarly entrusted with it under the next chancellor,
John de Stratford, bishop of Winchester, in April and November 1331, and April and December 1332. In 1329 he was a commissioner with the Bishop of Hereford and another to open the adjourned session of parliament. ==Death==