What is law in a society?
A system of rules organizing relationships within a society.
Why does the history of law overlap with civilization history?
Because each organized society develops rules, procedures, and institutions.
How do legal systems vary?
They vary as oral or written, religious or secular, and based on custom or legislation.
What does the Roman formula 'ubi societas, ibi ius' mean?
Where there is society, there is law.
When did written law emerge in the Fertile Crescent?
Toward the end of the fourth millennium BCE.
What is the Code of Ur-Nammu known for?
It is the oldest known Mesopotamian legal collection.
What type of sanctions does the Code of Ur-Nammu favor?
Pecuniary sanctions over corporal punishment.
How many articles does the Code of Hammurabi contain?
282 articles.
What logic does the Code of Hammurabi apply in its sanctions?
A casuistic logic varying sanctions by social status.
What does Ma’at represent in Egyptian belief?
Cosmic order, justice, and balance.
Who was responsible for maintaining Ma’at?
The pharaoh.
What legal rights did Egyptian women have?
They could own property, enter contracts, bring legal actions, and divorce.
How does Confucianism seek social order?
Through virtue and respect for rites.
How does Legalism maintain order?
By clear, severe, and impartial laws.
When did Confucius live?
From 551 to 479 BCE.
How did Confucius view penal law?
As a crude instrument for those unable to follow the proper way.
Who was Han Feizi?
A leading representative of Legalism around 280–233 BCE.
When was the Code of the Tang promulgated?
In 653.
What did the Code of the Tang combine?
Legalist tools with Confucian principles.
Which countries' laws were influenced by the Code of the Tang?
Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese law.
How diverse were precolonial African legal systems?
They were highly diverse with hundreds of distinct systems.
What is the African legal oral tradition?
It is the transmission of rules through elders, griots, and customary chiefs.
How did African legal oral tradition preserve customs?
With considerable precision and flexibility.
What was the goal of African dispute resolution?
To restore collective harmony.
How was African dispute resolution typically conducted?
By public discussion led by elders and accepted by the community.
What effect did colonization have on African legal systems?
It imposed imported laws without always abolishing customary systems.
What legal condition remains widespread in Africa due to colonization?
Legal pluralism.
How did Maya civilization distinguish offenses?
By whether the offender was noble or commoner.
What range of sanctions did Maya law use?
Sanctions ranged from fines to death.
What punishments could Aztec law impose for public drunkenness?
Death.
Where were specialized tribunals located in Aztec law?
In Tenochtitlan.
What are the three central Inca legal precepts?
Ama sua, ama llulla, and ama quella.
What do the Inca precepts ama sua, ama llulla, and ama quella mean?
Do not steal, do not lie, and do not be lazy.
Did the Inca have written legal codes?
No, they had no written legal codes.
How did the Inca maintain legal tradition and organize labor?
Through coherent oral tradition and quipus.
In which year did the Norman conquest begin centralizing English royal justice?
1066
Who established itinerant royal judges and the writ system in England?
Henry II Plantagenet
What did the writ system consist of in common law origins?
Written chancery orders allowing claimants to bring specific wrongs before royal courts
What did each writ correspond to under the forms of action in English law?
A procedure and a type of action
What is Equity in legal terms?
A complementary body of rules remedying common-law rigidity through conscience.
Who did disappointed litigants petition from the 14th century?
The king.
To whom did the king refer claims for equitable judgment?
The Lord Chancellor.
Name one institution introduced by Equity.
The trust.
Name another institution introduced by Equity.
The injunction.
Name a third institution introduced by Equity.
Specific performance.
What did the Judicature Acts of 1873–1875 do to jurisdictions?
They fused common-law and chancery jurisdictions.
Did the Judicature Acts of 1873–1875 preserve the conceptual distinction between jurisdictions?
Yes, they preserved the conceptual distinction.
What does stare decisis require in common law?
Higher court decisions bind lower courts.
What is ratio decidendi in judicial decisions?
The principle necessary for a decision.
What are obiter dicta in judicial decisions?
Incidental judicial observations.
How does a common-law trial differ from a continental inquisitorial trial?
Common-law trials are oral and adversarial with parties presenting proof.
Who investigates the case in a continental inquisitorial system?
The judge investigates the case.
Does common law have a general private-law codification like the French Civil Code?
No, it does not have a comparable general private-law codification.
How did the common-law tradition spread worldwide?
Through the British Empire.
What role did the US Supreme Court play in common-law tradition?
It became a major source of legal innovation through its constitutional role.
Test your knowledge with 19 questions on World History of Law.
1. Concerning law and social organization, which statement(s) is (are) correct?
2. Regarding the emergence of written law, which proposition is correct?
Review the complete course in the study sheet for World History of Law.
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