Abstract: The present invention provides a method and system for imposing constraints on the induction of decision trees to control where in the decision tree, and in what order specific attributes may be used as node splitters. The invention is used to force a decision tree to contain a specified attribute in one or more locations, or to require the construction of a decision tree in which nodes split using one group of attributes always appear above or always appear below nodes using another group of attributes. This constrained tree is grown and optionally pruned in the same way that a prior art tree is grown and optionally pruned, subject only to the constraints imposed by the method of the present invention.