THE SERVICE CONTRACT IN ROMAN LAW

• Main Authors: Sanja Maksimović, Danijela Despotović
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University Business Academy in Novi Sad Faculty of Law for Commerce and Judiciary 2016-09-01
• Series: Pravo
• Online Access: https://casopis.pravni-fakultet.edu.rs/index.php/ltp/article/view/109

The service contract has been existing since Roman law. It originates from the locatio operis conductio contracts. It was the contract by which one party a conductor – was obliged to perform a specific job, such as a shoe making, wine transportation, etc., and the other party, a locator was obliged to pay the specified fee. It is very interesting that in Roman law a clear distinction was made between ordinary activities and those required a special education. In fact, in Roman law, jobs demanded a greater knowledge, usually possessed by highly educated people (teachers, lawyers), were not the subject of locatio operis condutio but mandatum which was considered to be a free contract. This paper will examine the origin of the service contract in Roman law, because it represents a basis and foundation of today's European legal system, and in addition, it is the most developed and comprehensive legal system of the ancient times.