What contributions did the romans make to the area of law?

Answer 1

The contribution of the Romans in the area of law was the Corpus Juris Civilis (Body of Civil Law) which was dubbed Justinian code in the 16th century.It was commissioned by the emperor Justinian I. It was a review of imperial laws going back 400 years (to the time of Hadrian). It scrapped obsolete or unnecessary laws, made changes when necessary and clarified obscure passages. Its aim was to put the laws into books (previously they were written on many different scrolls), harmonise conflicting views among jurists which arose from centuries of poorly organised development of Roman law and have a uniform and coherent body of law. It also included the Institutiones (a textbook for first year law students), the Digesta (a collection of fragments taken from essays on laws written by jurists, which was used as an advanced law student textbook) and the Novellae Constitutiones (a collection of the laws issued by Justinian).

This collection of books was rediscovered in a library in Pisa in 1070. It had a big impact. Bologna University (established in 1088) was the first university in Europe and its major appeal was its faculty of law, which had four professors who specialised in studying interpreting this work. It attracted law students from all over Europe. The Corpus Juris Civilis became the plank of the development an emerging class of professional lawyers. It became the foundation of the law in the Italian city-states of the high Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I (reigned 1155--1190) was the first dynastic ruler to hire professional lawyers to run his administration, which became based on the "Justinian Code". The use of Roman law provided a new rationale for imperial rule as the emperors' traditional claim to divine right to rule had been challenged. Since Roman law was based on natural moral law and the principle of rationality, it provided a system of law of for the imperial state which was a reflection these principles and which was separate from religion. It also provided a framework which ensured consistency in administration.

The Corpus Juris Civilis was also used to formulate the Napoleonic Code in 1804. This replaced the existing uncoordinated and contradictory web of separate old feudal and royal French laws. This code was different than the Justinian Code, which was a collection of edited or revised extracts of law. It was more systematic. Nevertheless, the latter provided material which was important in the creation this code, which was Europe's first modern code of civil law. Following the French example, many continental European countries later also compiled their codes of civil law and they, too, used the Corpus Juris Civilis as its foundation.

Answer 2

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.

Answer 3

The Romans promoted the rule of law by applying the rights and protections of Roman civil law and the principles of fairness and by allowing the conquered peoples to continue to use their customary laws at the local level.

The principles of Roman law were based on the concept of rights (jus). Roman civil law regulated the interactions between Roman citizens on the basis of what the rights of the citizens were supposed to be.

Before the emperor Caracalla extended full Roman citizenship to all freeborn people in the Roman Empire in 215 AD, the provincials, the people outside Italy who had been conquered or were under Roman influence, enjoyed the rights of jus gentium (the law of nations). Nation was the Latin word for ethnicity and just gentium was a sort of natural law which was regarded as "innate in every human being." The rights it conferred were considered to be held by all persons. They were based on the notion that the concept of justice sprung from the human mind rather than ethnicity and that they applied regardless of citizenship. Through this, the provincials enjoyed the protection of Roman civil law in their dealing with Roman citizens. Cases between Roman and non-Romans were adjudicated by the praetor peregrino, the chief of justice for foreigners, who was supposed base his rulings on fairness and on Roman civil law.

With the creation of rule by emperors by Augustus, some areas which had been client states, and thus had semi-autonomy, were annexed into the empire as Roman provinces. Newly conquered areas were also annexed as Roman provinces. Justice in the provinces was administered by the provincial governors and their procurators. The conquered peoples were still allowed to continue to use their customary laws at the local level. The role of governors and procurators was mainly that of adjudicating or arbitrating cases which the locals were not able to resolve. The most famous case was that of Jesus who was referred to Pontius Pilates, the procurator of Judea, to rule on the accusations the Sanhedrin of Jerusalem had raised against him. If an issue still could not be solved, the case could be referred to the emperor. Paul the Apostle was voluntarily taken into Roman custody in Jerusalem to escape from being lynched. He was transferred to Caesarea for his safety because of a plot to kill him. When a new governor decided to send him back to Jerusalem for another trial, Paul called his right as a Roman citizen to appeal to the emperor and he was taken to Rome.

The further development of Roman law during the period of rule by emperors, who were absolute rulers, occurred through imperial edicts. These were written laws issued by emperors and which applied to the whole of the Roman Empire, unless otherwise stated. Over time, as they accumulated, these edicts created greater legal uniformity and homogeneity around the empire.

Answer 4

Law is considered to be one of Rome's greatest contributions to civilization because the concepts of Roman law are incorporated into our laws today. Their ideas on civil rights are practiced in one way or another in almost every country in the world.

Answer 5

The Romans made may contributions to the rule of law and their concept of the legal system is the basis for the legal systems of the western world today. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the right of every citizen to a trial if accused of a crime. In other words, a person had to be proven guilty before being punished.