Author: Guarino, Antonio
Title: Cicerone come e quando
Review/Collection: Labeo 36 (=Pagine di diritto romano V la giurisprudenza e i giuristi, 78-92)
Year edition: 2016
Pages: 267-279
Keywords: Droit - Diritto - Law
Description: In this article, Antonio Guarino revisits his earlier skeptical stance on the authenticity of certain public law norms allegedly found in the Twelve Tables, particularly those cited by Cicero. Prompted by Bernardo Albanese's critiques—who defends Cicero’s reliability as a legal source—Guarino reassesses Cicero’s credibility in legal matters, especially regarding the supposed content of Table IX.1-2 on privilegia and provocatio ad populum. Guarino argues that Cicero, often driven by political motives and personal ambition, should not be considered a trustworthy legal witness without caution. He highlights that Cicero’s references to the Twelve Tables occur during politically charged periods, notably after his return from exile (57–52 BCE), when he had incentives to glorify constitutional norms. Guarino questions the plausibility of Cicero citing exact decemviral laws, emphasizing the lack of corroborating sources and the anachronistic language used. He also stresses the prevalence of privilegia (laws targeting individuals) in the Republican period, including Cicero’s own case, undermining the claim that such norms were banned by ancient law. In conclusion, Guarino insists on a cautious, historically grounded approach to interpreting Cicero’s legal claims and rejects the reconstruction of a definitive Twelve Tables text based solely on Cicero’s testimony [PhR]
Works:
Link: https://www.antonioguarino.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Pagine-di-diritto-romano-V-La-giurisprudenza-e-i-giuristi-Cicerone-come-e-quando.pdf
Author initials: Guarino 2016
Title: Cicerone come e quando
Review/Collection: Labeo 36 (=Pagine di diritto romano V la giurisprudenza e i giuristi, 78-92)
Year edition: 2016
Pages: 267-279
Keywords: Droit - Diritto - Law
Description: In this article, Antonio Guarino revisits his earlier skeptical stance on the authenticity of certain public law norms allegedly found in the Twelve Tables, particularly those cited by Cicero. Prompted by Bernardo Albanese's critiques—who defends Cicero’s reliability as a legal source—Guarino reassesses Cicero’s credibility in legal matters, especially regarding the supposed content of Table IX.1-2 on privilegia and provocatio ad populum. Guarino argues that Cicero, often driven by political motives and personal ambition, should not be considered a trustworthy legal witness without caution. He highlights that Cicero’s references to the Twelve Tables occur during politically charged periods, notably after his return from exile (57–52 BCE), when he had incentives to glorify constitutional norms. Guarino questions the plausibility of Cicero citing exact decemviral laws, emphasizing the lack of corroborating sources and the anachronistic language used. He also stresses the prevalence of privilegia (laws targeting individuals) in the Republican period, including Cicero’s own case, undermining the claim that such norms were banned by ancient law. In conclusion, Guarino insists on a cautious, historically grounded approach to interpreting Cicero’s legal claims and rejects the reconstruction of a definitive Twelve Tables text based solely on Cicero’s testimony [PhR]
Works:
Link: https://www.antonioguarino.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Pagine-di-diritto-romano-V-La-giurisprudenza-e-i-giuristi-Cicerone-come-e-quando.pdf
Author initials: Guarino 2016
