The importance of the Roman law in/for the formation of the brazilian jurist

Abstract

This article results from a research project in which it was demonstrated the importance of the study of the Roman law in the formation of the Brazilian jurist. It deals with a topic that is currently discussed not only in European countries but also in Latin American ones, especially in Brazil, due to the fact that, the principles and rules of the Roman system constitute the basis of the Law of several countries. Preliminarily it is conceived an idea of the Roman Law and the main events that caused its origin, distributed in periods of time. After that, it is demonstrated briefly, the development and temporary disregard of the Roman Law, emphasizing afterwards the revival of its study by Schools that emerged on the XII century, due to its practical application which named it Common Law. The Jusnaturalist School that preached the codification of Law (in the XVIII century), substantiated the text and led it to the promulgation of the Code of Prússia based on which the French Code, the German Code and other legal texts arose. Later it is registered the practical application of Roman Law in Brazil by means of Portugal Ordenations that remained effective until the promulgation of the first Civil Code in 1916. The latter has been recently substituted by the Civil Code of 2002 that took effect in 2003. It is also noticed that the several Brazilian Civil Codes show a significant influence of Roman law on the elaboration of its texts. Finally, it is confirmed the importance of the study of the Roman law for the theoretical-practical formation of the Brazilian jurist.