Rei vindicatio
Encyclopedia
Rei vindicatio is a legal action by which the plaintiff
demands that the defendant
return a thing that belongs to the plaintiff. It may only be used when plaintiff owns the thing, and the defendant is somehow impeding the plaintiff's possession of the thing. The term originated in ancient Rome
.
The plaintiff
could also institute an actio furti (a personal action) in order to punish the defendant
. If the thing could not be recovered, the plaintiff
could claim damages from the defendant
with the aid of the condictio furtiva (a personal action). With the aid of the actio legis Aquiliae (a personal action), the plaintiff
could claim damages from the defendant
. it is an action strictly available to owners only,if you are a non owner you cannot claim under this principle( you can get what you don't have)
Rei vindicatio was derived from the ius civile, therefore was only available to Roman citizens.
was much more particular about the specification of the "thing". A plaintiff could not have won a case without specifying the thing in question.
At a theoretical level, Roman jurist
s identified three kinds of "thing":
and the Proculean school, remained influential from the late Republic
throughout the classical
period. Most modern Romanists consider these schools to be influenced to some extent by Greek philosophy
. They say that the Sabinian school was the student of Stoicism
, while the Proculian school followed Aristotle
or Peripateticism. Greek influence is especially evident in classical Roman thinking on accession and specification. Sabinians, following Stoicism, argued that in these areas hyle
supersedes eidos
. Proculians countered that eidos is the decisive factor for a fate of a thing.
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
demands that the defendant
Defendant
A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute...
return a thing that belongs to the plaintiff. It may only be used when plaintiff owns the thing, and the defendant is somehow impeding the plaintiff's possession of the thing. The term originated in ancient Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
.
The plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
could also institute an actio furti (a personal action) in order to punish the defendant
Defendant
A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute...
. If the thing could not be recovered, the plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
could claim damages from the defendant
Defendant
A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute...
with the aid of the condictio furtiva (a personal action). With the aid of the actio legis Aquiliae (a personal action), the plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
could claim damages from the defendant
Defendant
A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute...
. it is an action strictly available to owners only,if you are a non owner you cannot claim under this principle( you can get what you don't have)
Rei vindicatio was derived from the ius civile, therefore was only available to Roman citizens.
Specification of the thing
The function of rei vindicatio remains the same in most modern legal systems as it was in ancient Rome. However, Roman lawRoman law
Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, and the legal developments which occurred before the 7th century AD — when the Roman–Byzantine state adopted Greek as the language of government. The development of Roman law comprises more than a thousand years of jurisprudence — from the Twelve...
was much more particular about the specification of the "thing". A plaintiff could not have won a case without specifying the thing in question.
At a theoretical level, Roman jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
s identified three kinds of "thing":
- Corpus unitum
- Corpus coniunctum
- Corpus ex distantibus was not a single thing, but a bundle of independent things, such as a herd of cattle. Cattle were so important in Roman society that Roman jurists developed the regulation on cattle on a full scale. Corpus ex distantibus was the most disputed of the three.
Greek influence on Roman legal thought
Two law schools in Rome, the Sabinian schoolSabinian school
The Sabinian school was one of the two important schools of Law in Rome during the 1st and 2nd centuries CE.The Sabinians took their name from Masurius Sabinus but later were known as Cassians after Sabinus' student, Cassius Longinus....
and the Proculean school, remained influential from the late Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
throughout the classical
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
period. Most modern Romanists consider these schools to be influenced to some extent by Greek philosophy
Greek philosophy
Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BCE and continued through the Hellenistic period, at which point Ancient Greece was incorporated in the Roman Empire...
. They say that the Sabinian school was the student of Stoicism
Stoicism
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early . The Stoics taught that destructive emotions resulted from errors in judgment, and that a sage, or person of "moral and intellectual perfection," would not suffer such emotions.Stoics were concerned...
, while the Proculian school followed Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
or Peripateticism. Greek influence is especially evident in classical Roman thinking on accession and specification. Sabinians, following Stoicism, argued that in these areas hyle
Hyle
In philosophy, hyle refers to matter or stuff. It can also be the material cause underlying a change in Aristotelian philosophy. The Greeks originally had no word for matter in general, as opposed to raw material suitable for some specific purpose or other, so Aristotle adapted the word for...
supersedes eidos
Theory of Forms
Plato's theory of Forms or theory of Ideas asserts that non-material abstract forms , and not the material world of change known to us through sensation, possess the highest and most fundamental kind of reality. When used in this sense, the word form is often capitalized...
. Proculians countered that eidos is the decisive factor for a fate of a thing.
See also
- ReplevinReplevinIn creditors' rights law, replevin, sometimes known as "claim and delivery," is a legal remedy for a person to recover goods unlawfully withheld from his or her possession, by means of a special form of legal process in which a court may require a defendant to return specific goods to the...
- TroverTroverTrover is a form of lawsuit in common-law countries for recovery of damages for wrongful taking of personal property. Trover belongs to a series of remedies for such wrongful taking, its distinctive feature being recovery only for the value of whatever was taken, not for the recovery of the...
- DetinueDetinueIn tort law, detinue is an action to recover for the wrongful taking of personal property. It is initiated by an individual who claims to have a greater right to their immediate possession than the current possessor...
- Conversion (law)Conversion (law)Conversion is a common law tort. A conversion is a voluntary act by one person inconsistent with the ownership rights of another. It is a tort of strict liability...
- BailmentBailmentBailment describes a legal relationship in common law where physical possession of personal property, or chattel, is transferred from one person to another person who subsequently has possession of the property...
- In remIn remIn rem is Latin for "against a thing." In a lawsuit, an action in rem is directed towards a piece of property rather than against a person . The action disputes or seeks to transfer title to property. When title to real estate In rem is Latin for "against a thing." In a lawsuit, an action in rem...
- Bona fide purchaserBona fide purchaserA bona fide purchaser referred to more completely as a bona fide purchaser for value without notice is a term used in the law of real property and personal property to refer to an innocent party who purchases property without notice of any other party's claim to the title of that property...