Other leading jurists of the Principate period

Massurius Sabinus

Massurius Sabinus, after whom the Sabinian school was named, lived in the times of Tiberius and Nero.^{^[968]} Although he was of humble origin and was not admitted to the equestrian class until later in life, Tiberius granted him the ius pulice respondendi in recognition of his exceptional knowledge and outstanding ability as a lawyer.^{^[969]} His chief work, a systematic treatise on the ius civile in three books, exercised a strong influence on Roman legal thought and was subjected to extensive commentary by later jurists in works known as 'ad Sabinum'.

In this work Sabinus adopted a division of the ius civile into four parts: law of succession, law of persons, law of obligations and law of things.^{^[970]}[971] Other works attributed to Sabinus included a commentary on the edict of the praetor urbanus, a collection of responsa, a monograph on theft (de furtis) and a commentary on the lex lulia de iudiciis privatis^y>

Proculus

Very little is known about the jurist Proculus, from whom the Proculian school derived its name. All that is known about him comes from citations by later classical jurists included in Justinian's Digest. It appears that he had achieved success in political life (he was probably elected to the praetorship) and that his works, of which only a collection of epistolae is known, were highly regarded by other jurists.

Gaius Cassius Longinus

C. Cassius Longinus belonged to a leading plebeian family and lived in the times of Claudius, Nero and Vespasian. He was a student of Sabinus whom he later succeeded as head of the Sabinian school.^{^[972]} He attained the urban praetorship and the consulship (30 AD), and served as governor of Asia and Syria several times between the years 40 and 49 AD.

Mercifulness does not appear to have been one of his virtues, as his name is associated with the persecution of slaves during the reign of Nero.^{^{New Roman">[973]}} However, his reputation for legal knowledge was unparalleled and his works were highly regarded by his contemporaries. His chief work, an extensive treatise on the ius civile, is known to us mainly from references and fragments included in the writings of later jurists.

lavolenus Priscus

lavolenus was bom about 60 AD and was still alive in the time of Hadrian. He headed the Sabinian (or Cassian) school and was a member of the consilium principis during the reign of Trajan. He also held the position of consul in 86 AD and served as governor of Germany, Syria and Africa. His main works included a collection of epistulae in fourteen books, commentaries on the works of earlier jurists (libri ex Cassio, ex Plautio), and a collection of texts from Labeo's posthumous work posteriores!'²Fragments of these have been included in the Digest of Justinian.

Publius luventius Celsus (filius)

Celsus lived in the early second century AD and succeeded his father (P. luventius Celsus the Elder - a less known jurist) in the leadership of the school of the Proculians. He held the praetorship and the consulship, was a member of the consilium principis under Hadrian, and served as governor of Thrace. Fragments of his main work Digesta, which consisted of thirty- nine books, can be found in the Digest. He also published collections of epistulae, quaestiones and commentaries. To Celsus is attributed the classical definition of law as 'the art of good and equitable'.^{^[974]}[975]

Salvius Julianus

Julian, the last known head of the Sabinian (or Cassian) school and probably the greatest jurist of the second century AD, was born in Hadrumentum in the province of Africa.^{^[976]} Like other eminent jurists of this period, he had a brilliant political career.

He occupied the highest offices of the state during the reigns of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius, including those of tribune, praetor, consul, pontifex and governor of Germany, Spain and Africa. He was also a member of the now permanent consilium principis. As we saw earlier, Julian was assigned by Emperor Hadrian the important task of consolidating the praetorian edict - a task which he completed in about 130 AD. Another important work of his was the Digesta, a collection of responsa in ninety books. The Digesta appears to have exercised a strong influence on the legal thinking of the classical period, as manifested by the numerous references to it by later jurists and the large number of fragments included in the Digest of Justinian.

Sextus Pomponius

Pomponius, a contemporary of Julian, is the author of several works, including three treatises on the ius civile written in the form of commentaries on earlier juristic writings {ad Quinum Mucium, ad Plautium, ad Sabinum), an extensive commentary on the praetorian edict, collections of epistulae and several monographs on various individual subjects (stipulationes, senatusconsulta, etc.). He is also the author of the liber singularis enchiridii, a work containing an outline of Roman legal and constitutional history from the period of the kings down to his own day. The relevant fragment has been preserved in its entirety in the Digest of Justinian, under the title 'de origine iuris' ('on the origin of law') and, notwithstanding its gaps and inconsistencies, constitutes one of our primär/ sources of information on the historical development of Roman law. Pomponius appears to have been better known as an antiquarian rather than as a lawyer, although some of his doctrinal writings are referred to by other jurists and numerous fragments have been included in the Digest. There is no evidence that he ever held public office and, as no responsa of his are mentioned, it is not known whether he had been given the ius publice respondendi.

Gaius

Although Gaius is regarded as one of the most influential jurists of the classical period,^{^[977]}[978] almost nothing is known about his personal life - not even his family name (Gaius is only a praenomen, or first name).

Evidence from his own work suggests that he lived during the reigns of Hadrian (117-138 AD), Antoninus Pius (138-161 AD) and Marcus Aurelius (161180 AD), and that he completed his Institutes after 161 AD.^{^[979]} His style of writing and his knowledge of the laws and customs that applied in the eastern provinces suggested to some modem scholars that he was a provincial, probably from Asia, although this cannot be established with certainty.^{^[980]} But there is no doubt that he was a Roman citizen, as manifested by the fact that he draws a distinction between 'customs obtaining among foreigners (apud peregrinos) and our (Roman) customs (apud nosy.^{^[981]} The fact that he refers to the leaders of the Sabinian school as 'our teachers' indicates that he had studied law at Rome. It is believed that Gaius was engaged in the public teaching of law (ius publice docens), but he had not been accepted as a member of the select group of jurists to whom the ius respondendi had been granted, as his opinions are not cited by subsequent jurists. Probably he was one of the many lesser jurists outside this group, rescued from oblivion by the later recognition and influence of his Institutes.^{^[982]}

Gaius's works included a commentary on the Law of the Twelve Tables in six books, commentaries on the edictum provinciate, the aedilician edict and the edict of the praetor urbanus, and a number of treatises and monographs on various leges, senatus consulta and imperial constitutions. Of his works one has survived almost intact, the Institutes (institutionum commentarii quattor), written about 161 AD. Until 1816, when Gaius's text was discovered in the cathedral library at Verona,^{^[983]} only fragments of the juristic literature of this period survived in later collections, especially in the Digest of Justinian and other compilations of the post-classical era.

Although the manuscript found at Verona dates from the fifth or early sixth century AD (i.e. more than three centuries after Gaius's time), it is generally believed that it accords with Gaius's original text. This view was confirmed further after the discovery in 1933 in Egypt of fragments of another manuscript, dating probably from the late fourth century AD, which largely matches the text found at Verona. About one tenth of the manuscript's content is lost or is totally illegible, but some of the missing parts have been reconstructed on the basis of extracts included in later compilations. A great deal of what we know about the Roman law of the principate period, including important information about the formulary system and the system of the legis actiones which preceded it, is derived from Gaius's Institutes. One should keep in mind, however, that Roman law, especially during the first century of the principate, was continually changing and thus the picture that Gaius gives us of certain

The Classical Period of Roman Law 301 matters may not always represent accurately the state of the law under the early emperors.

In the Institutes Gaius adopts a division of the entire body of law into three parts: the law of persons {ius quod ad personas pertinet), the law of property and obligations {ius quod ad res pertinet) and the law of actions {ius quod ad actiones pertinet)?¹ The law of persons (Book 1) is defined as that part of the law which deals with the legal status of persons and their capacity to have rights and assume obligations. In its sphere fall matters relating to liberty and slavery {status libertatis), citizenship {status civitatis), family {status familiae), marriage and guardianship. The law of property (Books 2 and 3) contains the rules governing inheritable and moveable property (including servitudes), testate and intestate succession, contract and delict.

Finally, the law of actions (Book 4) pertains to the various ways in which legal claims could be formulated and legal rights could be pursued and protected. This division of the subject was followed by the compilers of Justinian's Institutes and has been adopted with various modifications in modem codes and treatises on civil law.^{^[984]}[985]

Aemilius Papinianus

Generally regarded as the greatest of the classical jurists, Papinian lived during the reigns of Marcus Aurelius, Commodus, and Septimius Severus (late second/early third century AD).^{^[986]}[987] Besides being a member of the consilium principis, he was assessor to the praefectus praetorio?⁵ head of the imperial scrinium a libellis and, from 203 AD, he held the office of praefectus praetorio. In 212 AD he was murdered by order of Emperor Caracalla because he refused to devise a justification for the killing by Caracalla of his brother and co-regent Geta. Among Papinian's most important works were thirty-seven books of quaestiones and nineteen books of responsa, which also contained references to responsa of earlier jurists as well as to judicial decisions issued by the emperor and the prefects. He also produced a collection of definitiones in two books and a

monograph on adultery. Numerous fragments of these works have been preserved in the Digest and other post-classical compilations of Roman law. Papinian's works are admirable examples of creative legal reasoning, reflecting an independent mind and a profound understanding of the principles governing the application of the law. Subsequent writers, including the compilers of Justinian's Digest, attribute special importance to his works and often refer with admiration to his exceptional qualities as a lawyer.^{^[988]}

Julius Paulus

Paul was a member of the consilium principis during the reigns of Septimius Severus and Caracalla (together with Papinian and Ulpian) and held the office of praefectus praetorio under Alexander Severus. He produced a large number of works, including a treatise on the ius civile in sixteen books {ad Sabinum), twenty-three books of responso, an extensive commentary on the praetorian edict in eighty books, commentaries on various leges, senatus consulta and the works of earlier jurists (Julian, Scaevola, Papinian), two collections of decreta and numerous monographs on various subjects relating to both public and private law. A collection of extracts from Paul's works, known as Pauli sententiae, was widely used during the later imperial period.^{^[989]} Materials from this collection have been included in various post-classical compilations, such as the Vatican Fragments, the Consultano, the Collado and the lex Romana Visigothorum. About one-sixth of the Digest of Justinian is made up of extracts drawn from Paul's works.^{^[990]}

Domitius Ulpianus

Ulpian was of Phoenician origin and was bom in the city of Tyre about 170 AD.^{^[991]} Most of his legal works were produced during the reign of Caracalla (211-217 AD). Like Papinian and Paul, he held several positions in the imperial administration, including those of the praefectus annonae and praefectus praetorio. He also served as head of the imperial scrinium a libellis. But his political influence made him unpopular among the members of the powerful praetorian guard by whom he was finally assassinated in 223 AD (or 228 AD). Ulpian was a most voluminous writer. His contribution to juristic literature included fifty-one books on the ius civile {ad Sabinum libri LI), eighty-three books on the edict {ad edictum libri LXXXIII), two books of responsa, a legal manual for beginners in two books {institutiones), collections of regulae and definitiones, and several monographs on individual statutes, state offices (e.g., proconsuls, consuls, urban prefect) and matters of legal procedure. Although his work lacks the originality of other jurists, it is characterised by its remarkable lucidity and attention to detail. Nearly half of Justinian's Digest (about 42 per cent) consists of materials derived from Ulpian's writings.^{^[992]}

Herennius Modestinus

Probably the last of the great jurists of the classical period, Modestinus was a student of Ulpian^{^[993]} and held the position of praefectus vigilum between 226 and 244 AD.^{^[994]} He produced nine books of differentiae (controversial questions), responsa in nineteen books, a collection of regulae and a treatise on exceptions from guardianship {de excusationibus). Modestinus is one of the five prominent jurists whose works were considered authoritative under the Law of Citations of 426 AD.^{^[995]}

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Source: Mousourakis George. The Historical and Institutional Context of Roman Law. Routledge,2003. — 480 p.. 2003

Other leading jurists of the Principate period

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