Glossary

The following lists selected Latin terms frequently translated in this work. Definitions generally, but not always, have been derived from Berger's Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law.

With few exceptions, I have not included terms having essentially equivalent meanings in English. A fuller explanation, with accompanying reference to Berger and other sources, will appear in the footnotes to the translations.

Acta	Ecclesiastical documents often issued as charters. These cover everything from grants of land to the settlement of disputes. Sometimes they survive as originals; often, they are copies. A significant number are forgeries.
Actio Actio directa	A claim or suit. The most common sense is a suit arising from a contract creatВing a liability.
Actio in rem Actio in personam	A suit concerning the recovery of something. A suit claiming someone's liability either due to some offense (delict) or breach of contract.
Actio perpetua	In the classical civil law, an action not specifically limited to a single year's validity.
Actio utilis Adminiculum	An action modifying an earlier suit, the actio directa. A remedy or legal support strengthening one's position in a case or giving the opportunity to improve it.
Agere	In the classical law вЂ?to bring an action,' it means to sue or plead before a judge.
Alieno nomine Archdeacon	To act in court on another's behalf. An important figure in medieval diocesan government, there were several for each diocese. In the twelfth century, he was bishop's primary legal official.
Authenticum	This Latin collection of 134 imperial decrees (novels) was comВpiled sometime around the middle of the sixth century. Mostly a translation of the Greek novels, it was discovered in the early twelfth century at Bologna, shortly after the reintroduction of the Digest to the court. It takes its name from the assumption made by the early glossators that this compilation had been authorized by Justinian himself.
Calumnia	Trickery, deception, or any sort of subterfuge. The sacramenВtum de calumnia, the calumny oath, will figure prominently in the ordines.
Capitularia				Written decrees issued by Frankish kings, notably Charlemagne.
Causa				There are several meanings. In the law, both canon and civil, it could mean вЂ?caseвЂ™ or вЂ?reason.вЂ™ It is also the title of the secВond section to GratianвЂ™s Decretum, where 36 causae, divided into questions (quaestiones), present case studies.
Causidicus Cautio de rato				One who pleads a case, an advocate. The surety given by a proctor that the principal on whose behalf he is acting approves.
Cautio iuratoria Cavere Chirograph				This surety strengthens an obligation by means of an oath. The giving of surety. A type of medieval document cut in two and authenticated when the two pieces matched.
Cognitio Cognitio extra ordinem				The judgeвЂ™s hearing of a case. Replacing the formulary procedure of the Roman Republic, this process placed procedure under the magistrate, who ultimately represented the emperor.
Cognitor				In the earlier Roman law, this was a legal representative in a trial. In the later law, the procurator (proctor) took his place.
Cognitor in rem suam Compromittere Condemnatus Confessio in iure				The plaintiff. The parties agree to submit their dispute to an arbiter. Convicted or judged. When the defendant acknowledges the plaintiffвЂ™s charge before the judge. The ordines will treat this when considerВing proof.
Contumacia				Contumacious disobedience towards a magistrate; most commonly this is ignoring a summons to court. It is roughly equivalent to the modern concept of contempt of court.
Contumelia Convenire Corruptela Council Damnatus				Abuse, affront, even physical violence. To take to court. It can mean making an agreement. What corrupts, for example a bribe. An ecclesiastical meeting, most often of bishops. The technical meaning is condemnation, even to capital punishment. It can also carry the sense of convicted/sen- tenced, the common meaning in the ordines.
Decretal				A papal letter, either authentic or forged. From the outВset, decretals were not only consultative but also intended to carry a legal opinion, even a decision, which increasВingly would be their role in the developing ius novum of the twelfth century. Collected in compilations, notably the Quinque antiquae compilationes, they eventually formed
					the code of canon law, the Liber Extra, promulgated by Pope Gregory ix in 1234. How to ascertain the authenticity of a papal decretal will concern our authors, especially William of Longchamp.
Defensor Delict De rato					Someone defending another in a trial. Wrongdoing. See also maleficium. Concerning the surety given by a proctor ensuring that the principal he represents will approve of his conduct in the litigation.
Dictum					In addition to the most common meaning вЂ?said,вЂ™ as the past participle of the verb dicere, it was GratianвЂ™s running comВmentary to his Decretum. (The plural is dicta)
Dilatio Distinctio					Adjournment or delay. Along with the general meaning of вЂ?distinction,вЂ™ as in disВtinguishing a difference between two things or topics or highlighting a point in an argument, it was the title of the first section of GratianвЂ™s Decretum, where 101 distinctiones consider legal topics pertinent to the canon law.
Dolo malo Dominus litis					With evil intent. The one in whose name a trial was conducted by a proctor he appointed.
Duplicatio Eremodicium (heremodicium) Exceptio					Raised to oppose a replicatio. The unexplained/unexcused absence of a party in court. A challenge raised in a trial. These took a number of forms, for example raising an exception to delay a trial due to the defendantвЂ™s need to travel or that the plaintiffвЂ™s witnesses were not qualified to testify. The ordines will treat these and many more.
Exceptio rei iudicatae					An exception raised by the defendant that he had already been sued for the same thing in another trial and that it had been adjudicated.
Executor Editio actionis Edictum peremptorium					The one responsible for executing the judgeвЂ™s sentence. The plaintiffвЂ™s initial charge against the defendant. The peremptory edict informed an absent defendant that the trial would still be conducted whether he was present or not.
Fama					The root of вЂ?fame,вЂ™ it had the sense of reputation and posВsessed legal force. Its opposite, infamia, was serious, and in the ancient civil law carried legal penalties such as exclusion
			from public office or, for procedure, the inability to repreВsent someone as a proctor. It is an equally serious condition in the medieval canon law.
Infitiari In iure Inscriptio Instrumenta Interruptio civilis			To deny the plaintiffвЂ™s charge. Held in court before the magistrate. The act of accusing. Most commonly, documents, legal вЂ?instruments.вЂ™ An interruption in the possession of real property that occurs with the litis contestatio, when one claiming ownerВship charges the possessor.
Interruptio naturalis			An interruption in the possession of real property due to the property being lost.
Iudex qui litem suam facit			Literally, this is вЂњa judge who makes the trial his own.вЂќ When a judge intentionally judges deceptively, he becomes liable for damages.
Iuratoria cautio Ius			An oath given to strengthen the surety. Most commonly, either a right or natural law distinguished from lex, on which see below.
Ius commune			Term given by scholars to designate the blending of civil and canon law during the twelfth century and thereafter. Its influence was felt throughout Europe, including England.
Iurisiurare			An oath/to make an oath. There were various types accordВing to when it was given.
Ius patronatus			The right of a layman to present a candidate for an ecclesiВastical benefice. It was vital to lay patronage over churches and frequently the subject of disputes. It also carried with it the danger of simony, the buying and selling of church offices, a very serious charge. It is comparable to advowson in the common law.
Iustus titulus Legate			Literally вЂ?just title,вЂ™ it alleges just cause or pretext. A legal representative. For the medieval canon law, espeВcially in the twelfth century and thereafter, papal legal representatives possessing full authority and power. (See plenitudo potestatis)
Lex			This is law issued by a competent authority and recorded in writing. It is comparable to the modern idea of вЂ?positive law.вЂ™
Literae dimissoriae Laesio enormis			An appellant вЂ?s written appeal. A postclassical phrase common by the twelfth century. It means to sell something at less than half its value. An example would be if one promised to sell an item for 10 and,
						instead, sold it for 4, thus вЂ?injuringвЂ™ the owner for whom it was being sold.
Libellus Libellus conventionalis/ conventionis Litis contestatio Maleficium						A written petition or bill that initiated proceedings. A written complaint/bill to a judge stating the facts/reasons for the suit. Joinder of issue. Often equivalent to crimen or delict, it means any sort of wrongdoing.
Mandatum						A contract or mandate, where one agrees to take on the duty of completing a legal transaction or service on anotherвЂ™s behalf. It is to be done gratuitously.
Missio in possessionem						This involved the dispersal of the property held by a conВvicted defendant. When he, as debtor or heir, was insolvent, creditors could obtain the property for eventual sale. In the classical law, the praetor used it to force obedience from a defendant who, though summoned, had neither come to court nor sent a representative.
Nuncius						A messenger acting as proxy. This is found in both the civil and canon law. In the canon law, it was connected with papal legation.
Opponere Paciscere Pacta vestita						To oppose in court, to object, to raise an exception. To agree, to form a contract or pact. Literally вЂ?clothed pacts,вЂ™ these could be sued for in court. There was also the related sense of a promise or agreement.
Patrocinium Patronus causae Plenitudo potestatis, pars sollicitudinis						Legal aid or defence in court. An advocate. A maxim in canon law dating from the pontificate of Leo the Great. Widely cited, especially in the twelfth century and thereafter, it declares that only the pope has вЂ?fullness of power,вЂ™ which he can then freely delegate to anyone. The remainder of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, in practice, archВbishops and bishops, had вЂ?a share of the concern,вЂ™ (pars sollicitudinis).
Plus petitio Possessio						An overclaim. Possession. The civil law was very concerned to distinguish between possession and legal ownership. (See proprietas)
Praeiudicare						To prejudge, prejudice in the sense of damaging a claim. It can also have the sense of a previous judgment or precedent.
Praescriptio						Prescription meant claiming title to land and any rights attached to it based on long enjoyment without any chalВlenge. Arguments from prescription were common in
					the classical and also in the early canon law; prescription appears frequently in the twelfth century as a type of excepВtion raised by a defendant. For example, the possessor of land argues that he has held it unchallenged for varying lengths of time, with ecclesiastical lands requiring the вЂ?lonВgestвЂ™ period of forty years, and thus should have legal claim. This praescriptio longissimi temporis figures in our ordines. Prescription has connections with the Roman law usucapio.
Praesumptio					Presumption, a fact judged proven or possibly proven by inference from an established fact.
Praetor					In the classical Roman law, the magistrate with civil jurisdiction.
Privilegium fori					Literally вЂ?privilege of court,вЂ™ it was granted by the Christian emperors of the fourth century to clergy so that their cases could be heard solely under ecclesiastical jurisdiction. It would be a key issue in the twelfth-century conflict between Archbishop Thomas Becket and King Henry ii of England.
Probatio					The meaning varies according to context. It can mean a trial or examination; other senses include approval or proof.
Procurator					A legal representative, a proctor, for someone. In the clasВsical civil law, procurators could also be administrators appointed by the emperor.
Procurator in rem suam					One acting as his own representative or attorney concerning his own suit. This is a type of вЂ?ActiveвЂ™ representation.
Proprietas Provocare Quasi maleficium					Legal ownership. To appeal a case to a higher court. Liability for unintentional wrongdoing. It resembles negliВgence. An example would be if my cattle, without my intent or knowledge, trampled your crops.
Questio					Literally вЂ?question,вЂ™ it had other meanings, for example inquiry/examination.
Ratihabitio					Ratification or approval of a transaction done by a represenВtative, generally a proctor. It has connections with mandate.
Re integra					The legal situation is unchanged. A related term, restitutio in integra, is very common in the ordines. Its sense is that the proceedings are restored to how matters stood at the beginВning of the trial.
Refutatio Repetitio					In an appeal to refute in writing. To reclaim. Its meaning in the ordines is in connection to the raising of exceptions.
Replicatio					A response to an exception.
Res		The term has many meanings though, generally вЂ?property.вЂ™ It also can mean the matter in dispute.
Res dubiae Res iudicata		Doubtful, uncertain legal matters or questions. Case settled by a judge, often invoked as the exceptio rei iudicatae.
Res litigiosa		The object of a pending suit following thejoinder of issue. Whoever held was protected from third-party claims. He also could not alienate or otherwise dispose of it.
Retractare Rescript		To rescind. In the classical law, the emperorвЂ™s response in writing to questions from his officials or petitions from citizens. Over time, they were seen as not just consultative but, in fact, law. The papal decretal would eventually come to resemble these, though its normative, exclusive force was still not established at the time of the ordines treated in this study.
Sisti		To produce or appear in court. The common phrase is in iudicio sisti, to appear in court in response to anotherвЂ™s demand.
Socius Solutio Sportulae		Partner. Freeing a debtor from his debt. It can also mean payment. Originally gifts, by the late empire they were fees paid to legal representatives, for example advocates. They also figВured in concerns about lawyersвЂ™ ethics.
Stipulatio / stipulare		A stipulation, promise, obligation, or agreement given on demand.
Subire Temeritas		To undergo or submit to. Temerity or indiscretion. It can also have the sense of hastiВness or rash behavior.
Tenere Testificatio		To obtain or hold to legal liability. In addition to the sense of giving testimony as a witness, it can mean to provide proof.
Testis idoneus Transactio Turpitudo Usucapio		One legally able to be a witness. A type of agreement. A bad reputation. Acquiring possession of anotherвЂ™s land after a period of time.
Vocare		To call or summon.

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Source: Brasington Bruce. Order in the Court: Medieval Procedural Treatises in Translation. Brill,2016. вЂ” 357 p.. 2016

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