Roman Law: An Introduction (original) (raw)

Emory Law School, 2018

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.