Legal Sources

  • Constitutio Antoniana
    212

    Constitutio Antoniana

    It was a norm promulgated by Antoninus Caracalla in 212, declaring that all free men in the Roman Empire were to be given full Roman citizenship. Therefore, they all had the same law and the biggest number of rights. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaXeBSjInls (11:18 – 13:25)
  • Codex Gregorianus  and Hermogenianus
    291

    Codex Gregorianus and Hermogenianus

    Those were compilations of constitutions of roman emperors of the first tetrarchy (Diocletian, Maximi Augusti, and Constantinus and Galerius Caesars). Most of the work hasn't survived.
  • Tetrarchy
    293

    Tetrarchy

    Also known as the rule of four. Diocletian divided the Empire for better administration, where he had the total power in the East and Maximian in the West.
  • Edict of Milan
    313

    Edict of Milan

    It stablished freedom of religion in the Roman Empire, ending the persecutions directed by the authoritues against certain religious groups.
  • Edict of Thessalonica
    380

    Edict of Thessalonica

    It was decreed by the Roman emperor Theodosius. Through this edict, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire.
  • Lex of citations
    426

    Lex of citations

    It was a law promulgated by Justinian. Authority was given to this jurists: Papinianus, Paulus, Ulpianus, Modestinus and Gaius. Those were the only five jurists that could be cited in the trial at that moment.
    If there was a conflict between the jurists, the majority view would prevail. In the event of an even number of views on each side, the view of Papinianus would be applied. If Papinianus expressed no opinion, the judge would then be free to use his own judgement.
  • Codex Theodosianus
    438

    Codex Theodosianus

    It's a compilation of the laws in force in roman law during the Lower Empire.
    It's structured in 16 books divided into titles, within which the Imperial Constitutions appear in chronological order. The first 5 books deal with private law; the sixth, seventh and eighth with administrative law; the ninth with criminal law; the tenth and eleventh with fiscal law; the twelfth to fifteenth with communal law; and finally the sixteenth and last books are devoted to canon law.
  • Code of Euric
    476

    Code of Euric

    This Code is promulgated by Euric (466-484), the first king that changed oral customs into written norms. The Code has not been preserved in its entirely.
  • Breviary of Alaric II
    506

    Breviary of Alaric II

    It's also known as "Lex Romana Visigotorum", and it was promulgated by Alaric II. It contains:
    -Leges (Imperial constitutions) and iura (replies by classical jurists).
    -Roman Law; sources as the Codex Theodosianus, Epitome Gai, Sententiae of Paulus, Libri responsorum of Papiniano, Codex Gregorianus and Hermogenianus.
    -Interpretatio: it was necessary to clarify law.
    -Commonitorium: the only text for trials.
  • Corpus Iuris Civilis (the body of civil law)
    533

    Corpus Iuris Civilis (the body of civil law)

    Compilation prepared by Justinian, it was composed by:
    -The codex: divided in 12 groups, if we open it we can find laws or imperial constitutions
    -The Digesta: it was an important collection of jurists opinions about the meaning of concepts
    -The Instituta: it was for teaching, it only had 4 books
    -The Novellae: it was additional material to the Codex
    Justinian wrote it all in Latin, the only problem was that, at that time, the citizens spoke Greek.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klq84Z9O4GU
  • Codex Revisus
    568

    Codex Revisus

    It was a Visigothic legal code, a revision of the Code of Euric made in the late sixth century under the king Leovigild (568–586). The code does not survive and all we know of it is derived from the writings of Isidore of Seville, a near contemporary ecclesiastic and encyclopaedist.
  • Liber Iudiciorum
    654

    Liber Iudiciorum

    The king Reccesvinth prepared this set of laws promulgated by several Visigoths Kings. For Spain was extremely important because it was in force until 12th century. The Liber Iudiciorum had nothing to do with roman law, it was independent.
    There was a discussion about if the codes were personal or territorial.