Articles (Law)

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Ancient Roman law is one of the most important foundations of European legal culture. In this category, we publish articles on Roman legal institutions, legislation, the judiciary, and the principles regulating the lives of citizens of the Roman Empire. We discuss, among other topics, civil, criminal, and public law, the development of Roman law, and its influence on later legal systems. These articles demonstrate how law shaped the functioning of the state and society in the ancient world.

Damnatio ad metalla (punishment of being sent to work in mine)

The punishment of being sent to forced labor in a mine (damnatio ad metalla, poena metalli) was a punishment quite commonly used in ancient Rome. This punishment was unknown during the Republican period. The first…Więcej

Ius postliminii, or right of return (from slavery)

As we know, ancient Rome waged wars frequently. Consequently, situations in which Roman citizens were captured were not uncommon. Under Roman law, a prisoner of war ceased to exist as a subject. Being taken prisoner…Więcej

Lex Rhodia de iactu (Rhodian law on sea discharge)

Lex Rhodia de iactu is a set of maritime law regulations originating from the Greek island of Rhodes. It concerned so-called maritime dumping (iactus), i.e., cases where a ship’s captain (the so-called magister navis) was…Więcej

Imperial legislation for protection of slaves

Slaves in ancient Rome were an extremely important social group from an economic point of view. The number of slaves peaked in the 1st century BCE, which also coincided with the famous uprising of Spartacus…Więcej

Literal contracts in the Roman law

Aside from verbal, consensual and real contracts there were also literal contracts in the Roman law, which means they were made in writing. Despite few sources we know that they were quite diverse. Due to…Więcej

Perpetual lease in the Roman law

Perpetual lease, a type of limited property law, significantly evolved in Roman law with the passing time. Initially, a lease in the form of ius in agro vectigali has appeared as a law separate from…Więcej

Stipulation in Roman law

In the Roman law there were many kinds of agreements and contracts which could be used to bind sides. There were real, consensual, literal and verbal contracts. Among the verbal contracts, which were carried out…Więcej

Senatus consultum Silanianum – resolution authorizing torture of slaves whose owner was murdered

During the existence of the Republic, the Senate had mainly an advisory function. However, after Octavian Augustus took power in 27 BCE, the role of the Senate changed. Since then, this institution had a legislative…Więcej

Primary methods of ownership acquisition in ancient Rome

Apart from the derivative methods of transfer of ownership, requiring involvement from the previous owner (mancipation, in iure cessio, tradition), there were also primary methods recognised in the Roman law. Appropriation, accession, modification, acquisition of…Więcej

The notion and categories of things in ancient Rome

There used to be many categories a thing could belong to in the Roman law. The notion of thing itself was seen as very comprehensive and it contained both material things and various abstract concepts.…Więcej

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