itted to avenge the death, usually this vengeance was carried out against the murderer family. Presently, in most places, a murder will result in actions against the murderer, but actions through the legal system. As society continues to evolve, capital punishment, that is a death sentence against the murderer, is being phased out , as society leans more towards reformation over retribution. There are many different types of law, all of which were dominant at different times with different societies. Canon, Roman and Maya were some of the earliest forms of law, and as society evolved, Common and Civil are more dominant in modern times. Islamic and Martial law is also present at various parts of the world, in different societies. The laws that any society adopts can be used as an indicator about the nature of the society that uses them. Clearly, rules and regulations are important to every existing society and the extent and directions that the laws take can be used as an indicator of the evolution of man throughout time.One of the earliest forms of law was Roman law, and the influence of it can still be felt at present day in many societies. Roman law took over rule from the magistrates that acted in the will of the Gods, but were discriminating against the lower classes. This shows that the Roman society in about the 8th century BC was concerned with equity to all in the society. Prior, it was the nobles that had most of the power and used it against the lower class, but Roman law made it so that the lower, or plebeian, class was treated with more fairness. Roman laws set forth regulations on matters such as property, payment of debts, and appropriate compensation or other remedial measures for damage to persons. The key factor in this is equity to the plebeian class that was previously victimized against. Though Roman law lost some of its power, by the 12th century when European commerce recommenced, Roman law was once again incorpora...
