DEVELOPMENT OF LAWS classes who were harmed by the ruling

class.
THE CODE OF HAMMURABI (1792-1750 B.C.E)
- The sixth king of Babylon, created the most
famous set of written laws of the ancient THE JUSTINIAN CODE (527-565 C.E)
world, known today as the code of
Hammurabi - Emperor Justinian I was the ruler of the
- Preserved on basalt rock columns, the code Eastern Roman Empire, or the Byzantine
established a system of crime and Empire who set out to reform the Roman
punishment based on retribution and legal system by creating his own set of laws
physical retaliation (“an eye for an eye”) this and interpretations based on the old roman
refers to the law of “lex talions” laws.
- The severity of punishment depended on - The purpose of these sets of laws was to
class standing: if convicted of an unprovoked
create a universal set of laws that all of the
assault, a slave would be killed, whereas a
Byzantine Empire could follow, and was
freeman might loose a limb.
given precedence over any local laws,
MOSAIC CODE OF THE ISRAELITES (1200 preventing any contradictions in court
B.C.E) rulings.
- According to tradition, God entered into a - This set of laws would be known as Corpus
covenant or contract with the tribes of Israel Juris Civilis, which translates to "Body of
in which they agreed to obey his law (the Civil Law" and would also be known as
613 laws of the Old Testament, including the - The Justinian Code. The Justinian Code was
Ten Commandments), as presented to them used as the foundation for many European
by Moses, in return for God's special care countries legal systems that cite code to
and protection. interpret laws and their meanings (Civil Law
- First to incorporate humanism and the
System)
democratic spirit into a written Judicial code.
- Based on the dignity of man and individual
equality before the law. Individuals accused THE COMMON LAW (1066)
- After the Norman conquests of England, a
of crimes were considered innocent until
common law developed that helped
proven guilty, had the right to confront their
accusers, were allowed to testify in their standardized law and justice.
- The common law was based on judge
own behalf, were not subject to double
decisions. Judges would decide cases, and
jeopardy, could appeal convictions, use of
future cases would be decided based on
restitution.
- The Mosaic Code is not only the foundation those previous decisions, This system known
as stare decisis (Latin for ' "to stand by
of Judeo-Christian moral teachings but also
a basis for the U.S. legal system. decided cases"), was used by the early
courts to determine the outcome of criminal
CODE OF DRACO (B.C.E) cases.
- The present English system, which still relies
- Draco was a Greek citizen chosen to write a
on common law, has come to existence
code law for Athens
during the reign of Henry II (1154-1189).
- These were the first written laws of Greece.
- Common law is not applicable in the
They introduce the idea of the state (rather Philippines. The Supreme Court once held,
than private parties) providing punishments
for criminal acts. "xxx unless there be a particular provision in the
- The punishment were very harsh (often penal code or special law that defines and punishes
death), hence the modern word “draconian” the act, even if it be socially or morally wrong, no
(unduly harsh) criminal liability is incurred by its commission.’’
THE CODE OF TWELVE TABLES (451 B.C.E) THE PHILIPPINE LEGAL SYSTEM
- The Decemviri Consulari Imperio Legibus - The Philippine legal system is a mixture
Scribundis, a special commission of ten customary usage, Roman (civil law) and
noble Roman men, formulated the Twelve Anglo-American (common law) systems, and
Tables in response to pressure from the Islamic law.
lower classes, who were referred to as - The legal system is the result of the
plebeians. immigration of Muslim Malays in the
- The written recording of the law in the fourteenth century and the subsequent
Twelve Tables enabled the plebeians both to colonization of the islands by Spain and the
become acquainted with the law and to United States
protect themselves against patricians’ - The main sources of Philippine law are
abuses of power • The Constitution - The fundamental and
- An injured person could seek compensation supreme law of the land
from those who caused the harm (precursor • Statutes - including Acts of Congress,
of Tort System), even people from the lower municipal charters, municipal legislation,
 court rules, administrative rules and orders,
legislative rules and presidential issuances.
• Treaties and conventions - These have
the same force of authority as statutes.
• Judicial decisions - Art 8 of the Civil Code
provides that 'judicial decisions applying to
or interpreting the laws or the Constitution
shall form a part of the legal system of the
Philippines’. Only decisions of its Supreme
Court establish jurisprudence and are
binding on all other courts.
- To some extent, customary law also forms
part of the Filipino legal system. Art 6, para 2
of the Constitution provides that "The State
shall recognize, respect, and protect the
rights of indigenous cultural communities to
preserve and develop their cultures,
traditions and institutions'
- The primary sources of Muslim law/Shariah
are the Quran, Sunnaqh, Ijma and Qiyas,