Legal Speeches of Democratic Athens by Andrew Wolpert

Author:Andrew Wolpert
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.
Published: 2010-06-14T16:00:00+00:00

DEMOSTHENES 32

AGAINST ZENOTHEMIS

Introduction

The beginning of the Peloponnesian War marks when Athens started to become heavily dependant on imported grain.1 Nearly a century later, at a time when the city was suffering serious grain shortages, maritime cases (dikai emporikai) were established so that merchants and shipowners could settle their suits promptly and continue on with their trade.2 The terminology is slightly misleading, since maritime cases were not a new kind of suit but rather new procedures were established for disputes concerning maritime trade. A lender could still, for example, lodge a suit for damage (dike blabes) or a suit of ejectment (dike exoules) against a merchant who failed to hand over the security on a defaulted loan, but if the suit met certain conditions, he could in addition use procedures reserved for maritime cases (Isager and Hansen 1975: 84–85). They were brought before the thesmothetai regardless of the charge lodged against the defendant, and it appears that they were heard in the winter on a monthly basis when ships could not sail and many of the parties would be staying in Athens, where they would be making arrangements for the upcoming sailing season.3 For a suit to qualify as a maritime case and follow the legal procedures afforded to such cases, it had to concern (1) a written document and (2) goods either shipped to or from Athens (see 1). In contrast to other types of suits, maritime cases could be brought to court by foreigners, on an equal basis with Athenians, and it seems to be the case that this privilege was extended to foreigners in other cities as well (Dem. 35.45). If the defendant was a foreigner, he was required to post bail and those acting as his sureties had to pay the prosecutor the amount disputed should the defendant flee Athens before the trial (see 29).

The reason for the requirement that maritime cases concern freight going to or from Athens is rather obvious, but it might seem surprising that such cases had to concern a written document. This restriction has led some scholars to conclude that the standard of proof was higher for maritime cases, but the requirement was probably intended merely to limit maritime cases to disputes over business transactions on a scale that required loan documents. Professional shippers, lenders, and merchants engaging in international trade were responsible for the movement of substantial shipments of goods to and from Athens, and their business could not have been done without loans. The maritime loan stands out from other types of loans. It had a significantly higher interest rate because it also provided insurance to the borrower, who was required to repay the loan only if the ship carrying the cargo purchased by the loan arrived safely in harbor. Since the cargo served as security on the loan, it had to be surrendered to the lender if the borrower failed to repay the loan by a specified date. Therefore, maritime cases sometimes concerned insurance fraud and sometimes concerned disagreements

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