Report-roman-concept.ppt

TELEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ROMAN CONCEPT

Overview of Roman Law  753 BC – Roman law evolves from traditional founding of Rome until The fall of the Eastern Roman Empire (AD 1453)  Rome was first ruled by Kings  Papirius (pontifix) – a priest compiled set of laws concerning customary and religious norms. 509-27 BC – Roman Republic was initially threatened by conflict between patrician and plebian orders. 451-450 BC – Twelve Tables was created by officials called decemviri resolved in part the conflict. Republican constitution had three elements: the magistrates, the senate and the assemblies.

Magistrates Magistrates – consuls which has powers of declaring war, introducing or executing decrees.

Praetors – whom held coercive power which entitled judicial capacity  Aediles - maintenance of public order  Quaestors – financial concerns  Censors – census and supervision of morals

Senate Senate – literally known as “council of elders” that controls public finance, investigates public crimes such as treason, conspiracy and assassinations and in charge of embassies of foreign countries.

Assemblies Assemblies – sole constitutional authority over the imposition of honors and punishment; its power is limited because it could not initiate legislation. It could only approve and reject a measure placed by magistrate, which had been discussed and approved by senate.

Assemblies  Centuriate – most powerful assembly organized into classes based on wealth as index to military capacity which elected magistrates such as the consuls with supreme power and had the right to declare war or ratify treaties.

 Tribal Assembly – elected lower magistrates and adjudicated some noncapital cases.  Plebian Assembly – formed by plebians to resolve their conflicts

Cicero (106 – 43 BCE) Roman politician, lawyer and legal philosopher. Law is rooted a divine source; Jupiter. Natural Law is universal and unchanging. Nature ensures the common good.

Law is in the mind of “wise and intelligent men” and they are the standard by which justice and injustice are measured (philosopher kings). If in the minds of “wise and intelligent men” the law is in conflict with the laws of nature it should be disobeyed.

Civil disobedience should be used to force the government to make laws that conform to natural law.

Gaius Gracchus(121 BC) Roman politician and brother Tiberius Gracchus. Follows Aristotle’s treatment of law and justice. Distinguish civil law “which people makes for itself” and “peculiar to itself “ from the laws of nations which is common to all.” The law which natural reason makes for all mankind is applied in the same way everywhere.

Natural reason also reveals natural law so that law of nation is equivalent to natural law.