Aestimatio (law)
The aestimatio (also æstimatio or Germanized Ästimation ; Latin aestimare: "estimate", "assess", "evaluate", "judge") denotes the Roman term for values, estimating and thus on the one hand the rules for quantification in money or on the other hand for the logical determination of the legal consequences of an event.
civil right
In civil law , the legal concept of the unaffordable personal injury developed. This developed in such a way that it was assumed that immaterial damage could not be replaced in money:
- libertas est inaestimabilis - Freedom has no price. Violations of liberty cannot be compensated in money.
- liberum corpus nullam recipit aestimationem - A suitor cannot be valued in money. For bodily harm, compensation can only be claimed for medical expenses and loss of earnings , not for pain; see. today § § 842 f. BGB .
- infinita aestimatio est libertatis et necessitudinis - Freedom and the relatives are priceless. No money can be asked for their withdrawal; see. today, however, § § 844 f. BGB.
These rules are included in modern German civil law and form the principle of compensation for material damage (measurable in money). The reimbursement of immaterial damage ( § 253 BGB) is only granted in exceptional cases , such as a narrowly defined compensation for pain and suffering (§ 847 BGB old version), § 651f BGB; outside of the BGB in: § 97 Abs. 2 UrhG , § 40 Abs. 3 SeemG , § 7 Abs. 3 StrEG .
Criminal law
Under the keyword aestimatio ex post , principles have also emerged in criminal law. This is linked to the sentencing and the limitation of their relevant circumstances. The starting point is the privileging of the circumstances at the time of the offense in relation to later circumstances: numquam crescit ex post facto praeteriti delicti aestimatio - a crime must not be assessed more heavily on the basis of later events (see Section 46 StGB ).
Procedural law
Roman procedural law was designed to be results-oriented, and at the same time the boundaries between civil and criminal law are fluid, so that procedural rules apply to both areas. When making a claim or filing a lawsuit, it was customary to state the goal, which then specifically influenced the course of the process.
Litis aestimatio , generally for money process, denotes any procedural act to assert a monetary claim instead of another claim that is not actually aimed at money.
Aestimatio capitis ("estimation of the head") is a rule for the assessment of a fine or compensation in the event of a violation of personal rights, which was essentially based on the rank, dignity and person of the injured person. Both the principle and the term have long been used in English law. In old German law, the so-called Wergelder , which a delinquent had to pay to the injured or his relatives in order to buy the right to feud or self - revenge , had a similar function .
literature
- Arnold Ehrhardt : Litis aestimatio in the Roman form process: an investigation of the substantive consequences of the monetary conviction , Beck, Berlin 1934.
