ROMAN LAW

Emory Law School, Atlanta, USA

Fall Semester 2018

Rafael Domingo

Class Title/Name: Roman law

Credit: 2 hours
Instructor: Rafael DOMINGO OSLE
Grading criteria: Final paper and participation
Enrollment: No limitations

Course description: In the thousand years between the Law of the Twelve Tables (451 BCE)
and Justinian's massive Corpus Iuris Civilis (530 CE), the Romans developed the most
sophisticated and comprehensive secular legal system of antiquity. Roman law is still at the
heart of the civil law tradition of the European Continent and some of its former colonies in
the Americas, Asia, and Africa, and it was instrumental in the development of international
law, the church’s canon law, and the common law tradition. The Roman lawyers created new
legal concepts, ideas, rules and mechanisms that are still applied in the most Western legal
systems.
Specifically designed for American law students without a civil law or canon law
background, this course introduces the Roman legal system in its social, political, and
economic context. The course will cover the fundamental topics of private law (persons,
property and inheritance, and obligations); the revival of Roman law in the Middle Ages; and
the current impact of Roman law in the era of globalization. No knowledge of Roman history
or of Latin is required, and all materials will be in English translation.

Learning Outcomes: On successful completion of the course on Roman law students will be
able to: (i) demonstrate basic understanding of the foundations of Roman law from a
comparative perspective; (ii) analyze and critically evaluate Roman legal concepts and rules
covered in the course; (iii) present arguments based on Roman law sources in a well-
structured manner (iv) exhibit a working knowledge of Property law, the law of succession,
and the law of obligations (contracts and delicts); and (v) analyze the techniques of the
Roman law of litigation.

Final Examination:
1. The final examination for the course on Roman law will consist of an original research papers
(i.e. expanded essay) or a written answer to any of the hypos we will discuss during the course.
The title of the paper or the selection of the hypo must be approved by the instructor in advance.
2. The paper requires the writer to analyze a perspective or to argue a point. The paper should
be about 4,000 words long. It should contain: an abstract, a main text, and some concluding
reflections. The style should be similar to that of an op-ed for the New York Times. The
answer to one of the hypos should be about 2,000 words long and should contain quotations
related to the Corpus iuris or Roman legal sources.

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3. The deadline for submission of the research paper or the answer to the selected hypo is 5:00
p.m., November 28, 2018.

Office hours: Tuesday, 9:00-11:00 AM or by appointment: rafael.domingo.osle@emory.edu

Textbook: Rafael Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction (Routledge, 2018)

Syllabus

First Part: Roman Law in Historical Context

Session 1 (August 21, 2018): Introduction. 1. Significance of Roman law. 2. Classical

Roman law. 3. Greek impact on Roman law. 4. Justice. 5. Ius and derectum. 6. Public law
and private law. 7. Civil law. 8. Natural law. 9. Law of nations. 10. Jurisprudentia. 11. Mores
maiorum. 12. Lex. 13. Auctoritas and potestas. 14. Constitutional background of Roman Law:
15. The Monarchy. 16. Constitution of the Roman Republic. 17. Populus Romanus. 18.
Republican magistrates 19. The Senate. 20. The Principate. 21. Late Antiquity.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 3-46.

Session 2 (August 28, 2018): Sources of Roman Law. 1. The Twelve Tables. 2. Leges and
plebiscita. 3. The edicts of the magistrates. 4. Ius honorarium. 5. Senatus consulta. 6.
Responsa prudentium. 7. Ius respondendi. 8. Rescripta Principum. 9. Imperial constitutions.
10. The Constituio Antoniniana. 11. The Gregorian and Hermogenian Codes. 12. The
Theodosian Code. 13. The Law of Citations. 14. Justinian and the Corpus Iuris. 15.
Justinian’s Code. 16. The Digest. 17. The Institutes. 18. The Novels of Justinian.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 47-61 and 78-87.

Session 3 (September 4, 2018): The Jurists and the Legal Science. 1. Early history of
Jurisprudence. 2. The founders of the civil law. 3. Quintus Mucius Scevola Pontifex. 4.
Servius Sulpicius Rufus. 5. Other republican jurists. 6. Jurists of the early Principate. 7.
Marcus Antistius Labeo. 8. Masurius Sabinus. 9. Jurists of the second century. 10. Celsus the
Younger. 11. Salvius Julianus. 12. Sextus Pomponius. 13. Gaius and his Institutes. 14.
Cervidius Scevola. 15. The late classical jurisprudence. 16. Aemilius Papinianus. 17. Julius
Paulus.18. Domitius Ulpianus. 19. Herennius Modestinus. 20. The end of classical
jurisprudence

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 62-77.

Session 4 (September 11, 2018): The Revival of Roman Law. 1. The recovery of the
Digest. 2. The civil law glossators. 3. The commentators. 4. Roman law and Canon law. 5.
Roman law and English law. 6. The French Humanists. 7. The German “modern use” of the
Digest. 8. The Dutch Elegant Jurisprudence. 9. The School of Natural law. 10. The age of
codification. 11. The German Historical School. 12. The School of Pandectists and the
German Civil Code. 13. The jurisprudence of interests. 14. Roman law in the United States.
15. Roman law in the twentieth century.16. Roman law and global law

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Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 88-107.

Second Part: Roman Law in Action

Session 5 (September 18, 2018): Civil Litigation. 1. Legis actiones. 2. The formulary
procedure. 3. Preliminary proceedings. 4. Litigants before the praetor. 5. Representation in
litigation. 6. The formula of the action. 7. Classifications of actions. 8. Praetorian remedies. 9.
Litis contestatio. 10. Apud iudicem. 11. Execution of the judgment. 12. Arbitration. 13.
Cognitio extra ordinem

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 111-126.

Session 6 (September 25, 2018): Family Law. 1. Persona, caput, and status. 2. Paternal
power (patria potestas). 3. Manus. 4. Tutelage (tutela). 5. Guardianship (cura or curatio). 6.
Women and tutelage over women. 7. Slaves. 8. Manumission. 9. Patrons and freedmen
10. Unlimited liability of the pater familias. 11. Peculium. 12. Noxal liability. 13. Marriage.
14. Dowry. 15. Divorce and remarriage. 16. Concubinage. 17. Augustan legislation on
marriage. 18. Constantine’s legislation on family and marriage. 19. Justinian’s legislation on
marriage

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 127-143.

Session 7 (October 2, 2018): Property Law. 1. The law of things (res). 2. Classification of
things. 3. Ownership. 4. Co-ownership. 5. Possession. 6. Interdictal protection of possession.
7. Acquisition of ownership. 8. Mancipatio and in iure cessio. 9. Occupatio, accession,
specification. 10. Acquisition of fruits. 11. Traditio. 12. Donation. 13. Usucaption. 14. Rei
vindicatio. 15. Actio Publiciana. 16. Predial Servitudes or land easements. 17. Usufruct.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 144-161.

Session 8 (October 9, 2018): The Law of Succession I. 1. Universal succession and

hereditas. 2. Types of succession. 3. Heir (heres). 4. Types of heirs. 5. Hereditas iacens. 6.
Bonorum possessio. 7. Intestate succession. 8. Praetorian intestate succession. 9. Collatio
emancipati. 10. The major reform on intestacy of Emperor Justinian

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 162-179.

Session 9 (October 16, 2018): The Law of Succession II. 1. Testamentary succession. 2.
Forms of testaments. 3. Testamentary capacity. 4. Institution of the heir. 5. Substitutions. 6.
The querela innoficiossi testamenti. 7. Hereditatis petitio and interdictum quorum bonorum.
8. Legacies. 9. Types of legacies. 10. Acquisition of legacies. 11. Fideicommissum

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 162-179.

Session 10 (October 23, 2018): Hypothetical 1: Titius had two sons in power (Caius and
Sempronius). He emancipated Caius but retained in his power Caius's two daughters (Livia
and Cornelia). Titius died intestate. Can Caius successfully sue for a portion of the estate?

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Hypothetical 2: In his testament, Sempronius appointed Marcus as his heir. Sempronius also
left the usufruct of an estate to his ten-year-old niece Neratia by way of legacy. He left the
bare ownership of the same estate to his friend Celsus as a legacy too. The legacy to Celsus
was subjected to the condition of becoming a magistrate in less than a year. During the
pendency of the condition, Marcus, convinced that Celsus would never hold an office, sold
the estate to Servius for 50,000 sesterces. A few months later, Celsus fulfilled the condition to
be appointed magistrate. Aware of what happened, Celsus decided to consult with the famous
jurists and friends Atlanta and Emorianus.

Session 11 (October 30, 2018): The Law of Obligations I. 1. Obligation. 2. Civil,

praetorian and natural obligations. 3. Sources of obligations: contracts and delicts. 4. Types
of contracts. 5. Verbal contract: Stipulation. 6. Acceptilatio. 7. Novation. 8. Adstipulatio. 9.
Adpromissio. 10. Literal contract. 11. Real contracts. 12. Mutuum. 13. Commodatum. 14.
Depositum. 15. Pignus (pledge). 16. Hypothec. 17. Fiducia. 18. Innominate contracts.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 180-204.

Session 12 (November 6, 2018): The Law of Obligations II. 1. Consensual contracts. 2.

Sale. 3. Liability for eviction and latent defects. 4. Letting and hiring. 5. Partnership. 6.
Mandate. 7. Quasi contracts. 8. Negotiorum gestio. 9. Undue payment (solutio indebiti).10.
Pacta.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 180-204.

Session 13 (November 13, 2018): The Law of Delicts. 1. Penal actions. 2. Actiones mixtae
and reipersecutoriae. 3. Theft. 4. Robbery. 5. Wrongful loss. 6. Loss caused by animals. 7.
Injury. 8. Duress. 9. Fraud. 10. Quasi-delicts.

Reading: Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction, pp. 205-217.

Session 14 (November 20, 2018): Conclusion.

Basic textbook:
Rafael Domingo, Roman Law. An Introduction (Routledge, 2018).

Other textbooks:
-David Johnston (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Roman Law (Cambridge University
Press, 2015).
-Paul de Plessis, Clifford Ando, and Kaius Tuori (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Roman Law
and Society (Oxford University Press, 2016).
-Paul de Plessis, Borkowski's Textbook on Roman Law (5th ed., Oxford University Press,
2015)

Basis legal sources:

-The Digest of Justinian, 4 vols. (ed. Theodor Mommsen, Paul Krueger, Alan Watson,
University of Pennsylvania Press, 1985)
-The Institutes of Gaius (trans. W. N. Gordon and O. F. Robinson, Duckworth, 1988)
-Roman Statues, 2 vols. (ed. M. H. Crawford, University of London 1996)
-Ancient Roman Statutes (9ed. Allan Chester Johnson, Paul Robinson Coleman-Noron, and
Frank Card Bourne, University of Texas Press, 1961)

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Internet resources:
The Roman law resources site www.iuscivile.com, edited by Ernest Metzger, provides
information on Roman law sources and literature, the teaching of Roman law, and the persons
who study Roman law. The site is available in English and German. The Grenoble Roman
law site edited by Yves Lassard and Alexandr Koptev provides links not only to Latin texts
but also to modern language translations: https://droitromain.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr. There is
also the new online Project LEPOR (Leges Populi Romani), led by Cyril Masset and Zakaria
Abbadi, replacing Giovanni Rotondi’s leges publicae Populi Romani (1912): http://www.cn-
telma.fr/lepor/introduction. The Laws database of the Project Volterra consists of a series of
tables containing the texts of imperial pronouncements and related information covering the
years 193–455 CE: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/volterra/database/database-description. Literary
and legal sources are available online at www.thelatinlibrary.com