Female Attorneys in Ancient Roman Courts

Year 2021, Issue: 75, 1 - 15, 07.11.2021

Leyla Aydemir

https://doi.org/10.26650/iutd.961376

Abstract

Roman women were denied basic political, legal, and commercial rights. However, as a result of conflicts such as the Punic Wars for Mediterranean supremacy, the male population of Rome dropped, and women were able to take advantage of the situation. Some Roman women, who were essentially forced to perform all kinds of work because of this drop in male population, began to appear more frequently in commercial life and courts of law. In this study, we will examine cases where women defended themselves or others in the law courts of Rome, where legal activities had previously been solely the domain of elite men.

Keywords

Law, Roman courts, women lawyers, legal defense, Roman women

Roma Mahkemelerinde Savunma Yapan “Avukat” Kadın

Abstract

Cinsiyeti nedeniyle politik, hukuki ve ticari haklardan uzun süre mahrum bırakılan Romalı kadınlar, Kartaca Savaşları ve sonrasındaki tüm Akdeniz hâkimiyeti için yapılan savaşların doğurduğu bir sonuç olarak, erkek sayısındaki azalmayla birlikte birtakım avantajlar elde etme fırsatı yakalamıştır. Erkek nüfusundaki azalmayla birlikte neredeyse bütün işleri yapmak zorunda kalan Romalı kadınlardan bazıları, ticari hayatta ve istisnai bir şekilde de olsa hukuk mahkemelerinde varlık göstermiştir. Bu çalışmada, hukukun çoğunlukla elit erkeklerin alanı olarak görüldüğü Roma’da, bazı kadınların mahkemelerde kendileri ya da başkaları adına savunma yaptıkları davalar ele alınmaktadır.

Keywords

Hukuk, Roma Mahkemeleri, Avukat Kadınlar, Savunma, Roma Kadını

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