Roman litigation has long been a difficult subject for study, hampered by a lack of information concerning the practical operation of the civil courts. Using newly discovered evidence, Metzger presents a new interpretation of how civil trials in Classical Rome were commenced and brought to judgement.

Modern accounts of how the classical Romans sued each other tend to show the opponents willingly working together under the guidance of a magistrate, until their case was ready for trial. The parties found a convenient time to make their first appearance, at which time they decided on the details of their case, selected a judge, and received permission to go to trial. If any delay were necessary, the magistrate helped the parties in their arrangements to return. This picture is unrealistic: it presumes a high degree of cooperation between the parties, the personal stewardship of a magistrate, and the ready availability of a judge. This accepted picture emerged over time from a tiny amount of evidence. Justinian had no interest in preserving evidence on classical procedure, and subsequent generations of jurists often did not regard rules of procedure as worthy of interest. Recent years, however, have brought a flood of new evidence on classical Roman legal procedure. Metzger examines this evidence, painting a picture of litigation that is far less polite and far less orderly. He examines how the rules of procedure coped with the typical pretrial delays that the Roman system, and indeed any legal system, faces.

This book sketches the history of Roman Private Law from the Twelve Tables to modern times, and sets out the elements of the system. It does not attempt to summarize the whole law, but explains and evaluates its most characteristic and influential features.

The essays in this volume were presented in honour of David Daube, a scholar of Roman and biblical law, on the hundredth anniversary of his birth. DAVID CAREY MILLER relates the events leading up to the centenary celebration. HECTOR L. MACQUEEN describes the decades-long friendship between Daube and T. B. Smith, professor in Aberdeen and Edinburgh. ROBERT A. SEGAL analyses Daube's defence of causation in biblical law as 'sophisticated' rather than 'primitive'. CALUM CARMICHAEL discusses the ritual of the red heifer in Numbers 19 and its relation to Jacob's 'red, red dish'. BERNARD JACKSON discusses the parable of the prodigal son, the legal ambiguities that attend the arrival of the returning son, and the significance of these ambiguities, especially to the relationship between historic Israel and the new church. WILLIAM M. GORDON recalls his time as an undergraduate attending Daube's classes in Roman law. ERNEST METZGER discusses Daube's lectures on the Roman law of sale, preserved in typescript. ALAN WATSON recalls his time as Daube's doctoral student, and later as his colleague. JONATHAN M. DAUBE gives a lively and personal account of his father.

The Corpus Iuris Civilis, a distillation of the entire body of Roman law, was directed by the Emperor Justinian and published in A.D. 533. The Institutes, the briefest of the four works that make up the Corpus, is considered to be the cradle of Roman law and remains the best and clearest introduction to the subject. A Companion to Justinian's "Institutes" will assist the modern-day reader of the Institutes, and is specifically intended to accompany the translation by Peter Birks and Grant McLeod, published by Cornell in 1987.

The book offers an intelligent and lucid guide to the legal concepts in the Institutes. The essays follow its structure and take up its principal subjects -- for example, slavery, marriage, property, and capital and noncapital crimes -- and give a thorough account of the law relating to each of them. Throughout, the authors explain technical Latin vocabulary and legal terms.

The Corpus Iuris Civilis, a distillation of the entire body of Roman law, was directed by the Emperor Justinian and published in A.D. 533. The Institutes, the briefest of the four works that make up the Corpus, is considered to be the cradle of Roman law and remains the best and clearest introduction to the subject. A Companion to Justinian's "Institutes" will assist the modern-day reader of the Institutes, and is specifically intended to accompany the translation by Peter Birks and Grant McLeod, published by Cornell in 1987.

The book offers an intelligent and lucid guide to the legal concepts in the Institutes. The essays follow its structure and take up its principal subjects -- for example, slavery, marriage, property, and capital and noncapital crimes -- and give a thorough account of the law relating to each of them. Throughout, the authors explain technical Latin vocabulary and legal terms.