Law & Justice:Ancient Rome   

Period 3

Roman Court Procedure• With no public prosecution service, citizens had to bring cases up

themselves.• At early stages, this was done by verbal summons rather than a

legal document. • Next, a judge would be appointed and he would decide on the

outcome of the case.• The two parties could either agree on a judge or choose one from a

list called the album iudicum.

Roman Court Procedure

• There was a moral obligation to judge a case called "officium" for any male citizen that was chosen to do so. 

• Legally no one was required to judge because it was recognized as a burden.

• The judge was also not required to come to a conclusion.  If he swore that the case was not clear, he did not have to make a decision about anyone's guilt.

  

Roman Court Scene >

Roman Court Procedure

 •Roman trial proceedings differed during the Republic and the Empire. •During the republic, court cases were mostly private matters, and the verdicts were made by the judge (praetor) and the jury (quaestiones.) Anyone who had the aid of a patron could press charges. •During the Empire, Roman courts and their proceedings became much more elaborate and organized. The senate took over the role of the Jury in the three criminal courts, one run by the emperor, another by the consuls, and a third by the city prefect. •The courts in Imperial Rome were not subject to public appeals, as they had been during the republic.  Consuls decided upon whether or not a case would go to trial, and the presentation of evidence and calling of witnesses was strictly timed and recorded. •Provincial governors were allowed to compose their own formulas for court procedures, and in some cases, new governors changed the formulas every year, making the system impossible to keep up with.

Praetors' Roles in Court

The Praetors appointed iudex (equivalent of a modern jury) to decide guilt or innocence in criminal cases. They could also either appoint a iudex pedaneus, or oversee the case personally. In civil cases, the Praetor ruled in favor of either the plaintiff or defendant, and decided upon the aweard to the plaintiff (should it be ruled in his favor). Praetors essentially had the role of a modern court judge.

Roman Laws and Their Similarities to Today ~The first known source of Roman law are the Laws of the Twelve Tables from the mid-fifth century B.C., written in early Latin. They provided legal security among the Romans by establishing what was allowed andwhat wasn't. Before the Twelve Tables there was no written law, therefore people were being punished for wrongdoings, without technically breaking any laws.~The Twelve Tables were literally drawn up on twelve ivory tablets (bronze, according to Livy) which were posted in the Roman Forum so that all Romans could read them.~The praetor, one of the Roman magistrates, published each year his edict in which he announced how he would apply the laws.~Roman law is concerned with the relationships between people, their legal actions, and the right they have on goods. ~For centuries there were no courts. In the great public trials, like the ones in which Cicero became famous, his role was more like that of an orator than  the role of a modern solicitor. ~There were many phases of the punishment process. Taking legal actions is a phase of its own.  There were no actual judicial members until one of the final phases of the process.

Roman Laws Vs.Laws Today

Twelve Tables (451 B.C.)- The starting point of the Roman Constitution.Lex Valeria et Horatia de Plebiscitum (449 B.C.)- Defined the rights and authorities of the tribunes.Leges Genuciae (342 BC)- States the same office should not be held twice within 10 years, and no man can hold two offices at once.Lex Acilia et Calpurnia (67 BC)- Permanent expulsion from office in the case of corruption.

Roman:

Bill of Rights (1789)- A list of rights for everyone in America.  United States Constitution (1787)- set up the three wings: Legislative, Executive, Judicial, each with checks and balances.The President can not hold office for more then 2 terms          

The Twelve Tables

http://www.historyguide.org/ancient/12tables.html Original Latin Text and in depth interpretation at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Tables  

Roman JuristsKerry O'Rourke and Kelleigh Whelan

• Jurists - first repositories & interpreters of law • Stage 1: before 12 Tables - small body of men (patricians,

priests); gave definite shape & expression to law• Stage 2: third century BC - restrictions diminished (plebeians);

expounded customs & statutes• Stage 3: fall of Republic - obligatory for iudex (referee, jury) to

defer to opinion offered by jurists; inner order - path to distinction; Emperor empowered to make law (by interpreting)

• Throughout - Source of Law, but function changed• Classical period of Roman Law - most famous time• Roman Jurists - professionals who study,                                        

develop, apply or otherwise deal with the law• Famous Jurists:  Sextus Pomponius, Quintus Mucius                       

Scaevola, Servius Sulpicius Rufus, Papinian• Jurists in latin = prudentes• Functions: legal opinions, advice; draft edicts; legal treatises

Roman Jurist: Gaius• He lived from A.D. 110 to at least A.D. 179, since he wrote on legislation passed

within that time• Gaius wrote the Institutes, a complete exposition of the elements of Roman law. They

are divided into four books: o Treating of persons and the differences of the status they may occupy in the eye of

the lawo Things, and the modes in which rights over them may be acquired, including the

law relating to willso Intestate succession and of obligationso Actions and their forms

• Also wrote a treatise on the Edicts of the Magistrates,        of Commentaries on the Twelve Tables, and on the        important Lex Papia Poppaea. •  "The law is what the people order and establish",

        Institutiones, 1.2.3.

• Roman lawyers were different than today because they weren't paid and did not present the case (this was mainly done by the client)

• They could offer advice and had the choice to present a speech for either side•  In early Rome, a wealthy class of law specialists developed called juris

consults who gave legal opinions to peopleo This was not their main career it was more of a hobby

• Notaries appeared later in the roman empire. o They were responsible for, wills, conveyances, and contracts

• Anyone could call himself a legal expert, but the amount of cases he was asked to handle was up to his reputation

• This changed once Claudius legalized the legal profession

 Roman Court Procedure (Cont.)

 •Roman trial proceedings differed during the Republic and the Empire. •During the republic, court cases were mostly private matters, and the verdicts were made by the judge (praetor) and the jury (quaestiones.) Anyone who had the aid of a patron could press charges. •During the Empire, Roman courts and their proceedings became much more elaborate and organized. The senate took over the role of the Jury in the three criminal courts, one run by the emperor, another by the consuls, and a third by the city prefect. •The courts in Imperial Rome were not subject to public appeals, as they had been during the republic.  Consuls decided upon whether or not a case would go to trial, and the presentation of evidence and calling of witnesses was strictly timed and recorded. •Provincial governors were allowed to compose their own formulas for court procedures, and in some cases, new governors changed the formulas every year, making the system impossible to keep up with.

Punishments of Roman Law Nikki Wells

 • Forgery:          - Slave: Death         - Freeman: Banishment, caused then to loose there property and privileges• Misdemeanors: excommunication from society • Killing Your Father (Patricide):                            - The criminal was blindfolded because they were unworthy of

light     - They were then taken to the field of Mars and whipped with

rods.     - Then they were placed in a sack, which at times had a serpent

in it.     - The sack was then sewn shut and they were thrown into the

sea 

Punishment of Roman Law

Crucifixion: most shameful and disgraceful way of death        - Used on criminals and rebels, punishment for serious offenses such as rebellion, treason, and robbery.        - The Romans used crucifixion because it was painful and made the criminal suffer, which was seen as payment for their crimes.        - The criminal had to first carry their cross outside of the city, where the execution would take place.        - The criminal was then whipped with a flagrum, which was a leather whip with small pieces of metal and bone attached to it.       - Next the criminal was either nailed to the cross or they were bound to the cross and left to die of hunger. 

Roman Fire and Police

• The regular Roman army was not allowed to stay within any of the cities. Therefore there was a seperate security and fire department that protected the city.

•  7,500 constables (Vigiles) protected the city•  These men had to act as both a police and fire department•  Small house fires were a daily occurrence•  The Vigiles were sometime fined if they did not respond to a fire fast

enough•  Triumviri capitales- fire brigade stationed in groups of 20 or 30 that had

basic tools• During the time of Augustus the department was broken into seven

battalions. Each battalion would watch two of the fourteen regions

Roman Fire and Police

• All the battalions were placed under comand of a general or prefect• Prefect's went around and examined kitchens in every house and examine

furnaces to make sure they were working properly• Police broken into different categories

Triumviri nocturni - Primary duty was to watch the city at night• Police set up stations at the points where disputes were most likely to

occur

Heritage of Roman Law in Europe•  Studied intensively at law school in Bologna and at other

European universities towards the end of the Middle Ages• Better suited to regulate economic transactions and gave the

people legal protection of property and ability to pass down a will

•  A consistent legal system was developed for all of continental Europe called Ius Commune, or civil law

•  This legal system ended as nations were established and codified their own set of laws

 

-Justinian revised all of Roman law-The total revision of law had never been attempted-The revisions Justinian made are today known as

Corpus Juris Civilis. This includes the Codex Justinianus, Digesta, the Institutiones, and the Novellae.

-The first draft of Codex Justinianus was created on April 27, 529

-The Digesta was a compilation of older Latin legal texts.

-Institutiones was about the basic principles of Roman law.

-Novellae was a list of new laws that Justinian made-The Novellae, unlike the rest of the Corpus, was written

in Greek-The Corpus forms the basic Latin jurisprudence and

canon law.

Justinian’s Effect on Roman Law