In principle, a sui iuris Roman citizen enjoyed all the rights of citizenship and could own property as well as perform legal acts.

In practice, however, certain sui iuris individuals were wholly or partially unable to conduct their own affairs on account of their immaturity, gender, or mental disability or impairment.

Two basic forms of guardianship were recognized: namely, guardianship over persons below the age of puberty (tutela impuberum) and guardianship over women (tutela mulierum). The existence of the latter manifests the essentially patriarchal nature of the early Roman society where a woman always had to remain under the control of a male (whether her father or her husband) or, if she was sui iuris, under guardianship. As women became progressively more independent over the course of time, this form of guardianship lost its significance and had virtually disappeared from the scene at the end of the Principate age.^[229]

Curatorship (cura) became relevant where a sui iuris person above the age of puberty was incapable of managing his own affairs due to some disability. Curator­ship occurred in various forms, the most common being curatorship in respect of juveniles above the age of puberty but under 25 years of age (cura minorum), insane persons (cura furiosi) and prodigals (cura prodigi).