1. Kelly states that in ancient Greek law "There is no legislature.  The king does not make laws, in the sense of rules which the people must obey." The  Random House Webster's College Dictionary defines law as "the principles and regulations established by a government." Describe the   evolution of  law from the ancient world to the present:  An evolution from law not made by the government (king) to all law established by government.  Be sure to discuss the jurisprudence that justified this evolution in ancient and modern law.

2. Define customary law.  Using the Code of Hammurabi, Code of Gortyn, and the Law of the Twelve Tables as examples, describe the main characteristics of codifications of customary law.  What type of codifications are they?  What is the difference between unwritten and written customary law?  In your analysis of customary law, be sure to focus on the issues of certainty and legal change, procedure, legislation, sources of law, and the role of jurists in customary law.
 

3. Customary law existed in a period that was an "Age without Jurists."  Jurists take the stage for the first time in ancient Rome.  What was their role?  How did they influence the development of Roman law?  Could jurists play a similar role in today's legal systems?  Discuss the ways in which the jurists brought about change while preserving certainty. Illustrate your points with examples from Justinian's Digest.   How successful was Justinian's attempt to establish certainty in Roman law? Was Roman law, like modern civil law systems, a system based on codification?
 

Write an essay covering each of these points. It should be typed, double-spaced, and proofread. The font should be 12 point, the margins 1" left and right, top and bottom. Please number pages (in case of an accident!).  You can submit your paper by email.  It should be a DOS document in Word or WordPerfect.  If you are a Mac person, please submit a paper copy of your essay to me.  I shall be reading my email from October 7th to Oct. 9th.  If you have questions, send me an email to my penningk@maxwell.syr.edu address (I will not have access to my other account).