Chapter IV. On Civil Law

Civil law or civil right is a collection of laws by which each nation is directed to the common good, whatever finally may be its form of government. - But in a stricter sense, by the name civil law sometimes is understood a certain special collection of laws by opposition, for example, to military, criminal laws, etc. - Indeed among us civil law (the civil law) is taken to denote Roman right. - Cf. Bouvier, Law Dictionary, under the word Law. - Kenrick, Append. to tract. 6, de leg. civ. variet.

Question. Of how many kinds especially is the right in force in this our region?

Response. Roman right (the civil law), common right (the common law), and statute right (the statute law). - I have said especially, because in Louisiana, for example, much of French right is in force, especially as regards inheritance and succession of goods, and something of Spanish right. - Therefore:

I. Roman right, which elsewhere is called common, and among us civil, has always been held in great honor as full of wisdom and as if written reason. It is contained in the celebrated Code, or body of civil law, published by order of Justinian. This volume is distributed into four parts. In the first part are the Institutes of Justinian, which, as rudiments and elements for beginners of civil law, are contained in four books. But in the second part are the Digests or Pandects, which are distributed into 50 books. - In the third is the code, called Of Repeated Reading, divided into 12 books. - Finally, in the fourth part are contained 68 Authentics or Novels, which are designated in numerical order.

II. Common right is the complex of principles, customs, and norms of acting which among us are applied for the protection of persons and property, and which are not founded on an express and positive declaration made by legislative assemblies.

III. Statute right is the complex of laws which emanate from legislative assemblies, by a positive and express act. - Cf. Kent, vol. I, nn. 447, 472 and 473. - Bouvier, Law Dictionary, under the word Law. - Kenrick, Append. to tract. 6, de leg. civ. variet., n. 1.