This book traces the development of the Fideicommissa (trusts) in Roman law from late republican times to the codification under Justinian, examining an area of Roman law that is thought to have had considerable influence on the common law development of trusts.

"Very few books have been published in English to explain a particular Roman legal institution. This is an excellent specimen and is, indeed, the most ambitious since W.W. Buckland, The Roman Law of Slavery in 1909....This book, with its analysis of important texts, which are given both in Latin and translated, is a splendid guide to a branch of law important for its understanding of the Roman psyche and the working of law."

The Classical Outlook

"An excellent history of the substantive law of fideicommissa from their origin in republican Rome until the time of Justinian....It is full of insights that will expand the horizons of anyone interested in the comparative study of trusts and decedents' estates."

"This challenging case study in legal evolution offers a fresh approach to neglected, yet important topic."

"Specialists and advanced students of Roman culture and social history will find this a provocative introduction to the study of the development of the law within its social context."

David Johnston, Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge; and, Visiting Fellow, University of Michigan Law School