La gerarchia come criterio di verità: 'boni' e 'mali' nel processo romano arcaico

In archaic Roman law, the defendant in a civil trial could not be acquitted, even in the absence of any proofs, unless he had the same or a better social standing than the plaintiff. This rule has nothing to do with an irrational basis of the archaic trial, but is perfectly consistent with the Roman vision of the socio-cosmic order as hierarchical. A person of high rank (a 'bonus') was believed to be more trustworthy (to have more 'fides') than one from the lower classes (a 'malus'), and this rule applied not only to the witnesses but also to the parties of the trial.