Middlemen. How did Knowledge of Roman Law Spread outside Rome?

Because conventional modes of transmission of knowledge about law, such as through education and distribution of law codes, were marginal pursuits, the early spread of knowledge about Roman law and the possibilities it offered outside Rome continues to be one of the major issues regarding the study of law in the ancient world. The purpose of this article is to study the various modes of transmission of legal knowledge in the Roman world from the first century BC to the Constitutio Antoniniana of AD 212 as a reciprocal process. Based on epigraphic and literary evidence, it examines the role of Roman patrons, the impact of Roman magistrates, the education of lawyers and the transmission of legal texts as key features, but also brings in the impact of shared spaces as a venue for disseminating information about law. It argues that that in all of the possible modes, the role of a varied group of middlemen was vital not only in bringing information about the law, but also in providing practical knowledge about how law could be utilized strategically to one’s advantage.