Roman Public LifeGreenidge, A. H. J. (Abel Hendy Jones)
History
Roman Public Life
Greenidge, A. H. J. (Abel Hendy Jones)
Constitutional history -- Rome; Rome -- Politics and government
(i.) The intercession might be directed against decrees of any
kind—against those issued in the course of civil jurisdiction by the
praetor, in the course of criminal jurisdiction by the consul, aedile,
or quaestor, or in the exercise of other departments of administration
such as the military levy. Intercession in all these cases rested on
_appellatio_, the request for help (_auxilium_) made by the individual
who felt himself injured by the decree. The appeal had to be made
personally to the magistrate and the _intercessio_ exercised personally
by him. Thus we find tribunes tracking the footsteps of consuls to offer
help on the occasion of an expected levy,[764] and a praetor taking up
his position close to the chair of his colleague, waiting for appeals
from his decisions.[765] In civil jurisdiction the _intercessio_ might
be employed at any stage of the proceedings before the magistrate
(_in jure_); the appeal was usually from one of the city praetors to
another, although they might possess different judicial departments
(_provinciae_).[766] The general principle was to give the mutual
right of veto to magistrates possessing somewhat similar authority and
knowledge. But this rule did not apply to the tribune. His interference
was directed against both civil[767] and criminal jurisdiction, and
against the exercise of administrative power, especially that of the
consul. In such cases as the consular conscription or the quaestor’s
collection of the taxes,[768] it is not the general decree that is
opposed by the tribune, but its application to individual cases by
the _coercitio_ of the magistrate. An appeal of this kind made to the
tribunes sometimes became the subject of a quasi-judicial process,
especially if it had been made to the whole college.[769] A picture of
this process, which has been preserved, shows the appeal made from a
consular levy; the appellants and the magistrate appealed against appear
before the benches of the tribunes (_ad subsellia tribunorum_);[770] the
_collegium_ weighs the arguments and then gives its verdict, sometimes
with the grounds of its decision.[771] It is possible that the college
may in these cases have agreed to give the finding by a majority of
votes, although, if one tribune persevered in the veto, he might
overrule the assent of all his colleagues.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account