PLEASE NOTE: I am contemplating dividing this course into two courses: Mesopotamian Law and Ancient Greek & Roman Law.
Course Description
This course surveys the history and elements of ancient Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek and Roman civil and criminal laws —including the law of property, obligations, and inheritance. We will also look at law and social justice and compare ancient ideas regarding redemption and justice with our contemporary world. A persistent theme throughout the course will focus on the overlapping and often contradictory spheres of legal authority as manifested throughout Mesopotamian, Greek and Rome’s history. Students will be required to analyze cases pertinent to these areas of the law. Students will examine how the law served and shaped these societies, as much as how these societies shaped the law to meet its developing needs.
History-of-Law-Foundations-of-Law-and-Jurisprudence-from-Sumer-to-Rome
