Roman Law

Ancient Rome and Society Overview

Roman Legal System

Summary of Roman Law

Examples of Law

Roman Law

Renée Scantlebury

Canadian Law Overview

Commentary on the concepts

of law and equality

Roman Law's influence on the Canadian Legal System

• Canadians are governed by the rule of law
• Disagreements are settled peacefully in court or before a judge.
• Laws four main categories
• Criminal Law
• Civil Law
• Constitutional Law
• Human rights law

Ancient Rome

• Roman Law is the legal system of Ancient Rome
• Ancient Rome; powerful and important civilization
• Ruled much of Europe for almost a 1000 years
• Expanded to become one of the largest empires in the world
• Ruled from around 753 BC to it's fall in 476 AD

• Ancient Rome influenced many of the laws and legal ways we have today
• Like Ancient Rome, Canada is united under one system
• Twelve tables compared to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Criminal Code of Canada

Types of Classes

"Innocent until proven guilty"

Lawmaking

Two different classes in Rome: Patricians, and Plebeians.

• The concept of "innocent until proven guilty" was first codified in the twelve tables
• This concept was part of the reason lawyers were introduced
• Concept created by Romans thousands of years ago is still used today in Canada's Legal System.

The Justinian Code

• Roman lawmaking process is almost a set template for Canadian lawmaking process
• Roman lawmaking passed through 2 levels; similar to Canadian lawmaking that is passed through levels
• Has become a requirement for almost every democratic constitution

Plebeians or peasants worked for the Patricians and had no political rights.

Patricians were the descendent of the noble and wealthy families.

• Justinian Code created by Emperor Justinian
• Code was made to combine all of Romes laws and unify Romes empire under one system.
• The code consisted of 4 parts
• "Codex Justinianius
• "Digest"
• "Institutiones
• "Novellae

• Ancient Romans used the twelve tables and the Justinian code to govern their society.
• Roman law created a whole range of basic rights for citizens

• Some of the laws were ridiculous
• Others were useful
• Some still recognized to this day

The Twelve Tables

Created when everyone wanted to know what the laws were after Rome became a republic.

- A tree on a neighbour's farm be bent by the wind, and lean on your property...go to the court and have the tree cut down

- Everyone who died had to be buried or burned outside the city

- Innocent until proven guilty

- A notably deformed child shall be killed immediately

Table One- Proceedings Preliminary to Trial

Table Two- Trial

Table Three- Execution of Judgment

Table Four-Paternal Power

Table Five- Inheritance and Guardianship

Table Six- Ownership and Possession

Table Seven- Real Property

Table Eight- Torts or Delicts

Table Nine-Public Law

Table Ten- Sacred Law

Table Eleven- Supplementary Laws

Table Twelve- Supplementary Laws

Bibliography

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

"Code of Justinian." - OrthodoxWiki. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

"Roman Law." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

"The Avalon Project : The Twelve Tables." The Avalon Project : The Twelve Tables. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

"TimeMaps." Atlas of World History. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.

Image by goodtextures: http://fav.me/d2he3r8