Universality of the Rhodian maritime law

Jacek Wiewiorowski

There is no dispute that the many solutions developed in Roman law, and especially in the Western european roman tradition following the codification of justinian the Great, have been a source of inspiration as well as tried and tested reference points for the contemporary legal deliberation, in the very least providing arguments in favour of increased flexibility of the law in the future; some, one the other hand, remain a monument of timeless values. 2 The same is frequently said about the rhodian law concerning jettison, i.e. throwing goods overboard in order to lighten and consequently save the vessel, described and detailed in the opinions of Roman jurists, which have been preserved mostly in justinian's digest from 533 Ad, under the title de lege Rhodia de iactu (d. 14.2). 3 The rhodian custom or more precisely the rhodian principle, based on equity which requires joint contribution to offset damage, is considered to be a primary source of knowledge of the terms of jettison and other risks associated with navi-1 I am grateful for the critical remarks on the preliminary draft of the paper, presented at Interna