Published: 2023-10-05

Publius Pactumeius Clemens and the public activity of Roman jurists

Marek Kuryłowicz

Abstract

Publius Pactumeius Clemens is mentioned as an author and lawyer only by the classical jurist Sextus Pomponius in D. 40,7,21,1. No other writings by Pactumeius are known. It was not until an extensive inscription, CIL VIII 7059, was discovered in the African city of Cirta that we learned of the numerous public offices Pactumeius held under Emperors Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. This inscription carries a remark that Pactumeius was a iuris consultus. This gives us an idea of the extent to which jurists were involved in various administrative and public offices under the Principate. In this context we may ask about the role of Roman jurists and jurisprudence as a whole: was it merely the “intellectual pastime of the aristocracy,” “the brilliant intuition of jurists,” the accessibility of lawyers to all interested parties,” or a question of remuneration for the provision of legal advice, especially against the backdrop of a career in the service of the state? This is where the practical significance of secondary jurists emerges, which we now know more about from the epigraphic texts. To sum up, perhaps we should undertake a study to identify the group of jurists involved in public activities and distinguish them from the generality of jurisprudence, as opposed to those who were engaged exclusively in opinion-shaping, scholarship, and teaching.

Keywords:

Roman lawyers, Roman administrative offices, jurisprudence

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Kuryłowicz, M. (2023). Publius Pactumeius Clemens and the public activity of Roman jurists. Zeszyty Prawnicze, 23(3), 5–25. Retrieved from https://czasopisma.uksw.edu.pl/index.php/zp/article/view/13242

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