In 'The Viking' (Tre Tryckare), the laws that shaped the creation and occupation of Birka are discussed. Apparently Birka was an ideal place for the King of the time to set up a trading town. Unlike other trading towns that naturally evolved in places of transport intersection and rich agriculture, Birka was founded intentionally. Why? Because the King wanted to control trade and get richer. To do this he needed to make adjustments to the laws around recompense for murder and manslaughter. The role of a Viking Age king was less prescriptive than a modern day SCA king or even a leader of a modern country. The law was largely oral tradition with habit driving people's adherence. A king could not simply change law and tell people. How would he tell enough people quickly enough to ensure uniform change and compliance? Thus Birka was selected.
Birka was small with a manageable population of 300. It was also positioned in geographical isolation and organisational haziness. It sat between 3 things (local law courts), on the border of 2 districts (the parts within a province) and very near the edge of the North and South provinces. Laws were tricky to apply and people may have been vague about which applied when. So the king got away with changing a couple of laws.
Bjorkoaratt, the law of Birka, changed things so it was no longer cheap or free to kill a stranger. It gave visiting merchants similar rights of safety to locals, thus making Birka a popular destination.
What did he get out of it? New rule number 2 said that the King and his men got three days of exclusive trade on all new goods. He got rich.
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