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Aspects of the legal institution of public arbitration in Classical Athens (Doctoral thesis)

Νάστος, Βασίλειος/ Nastos, Vasileios

The present study seeks to examine certain aspects of the legal institution of public arbitration, as it was normatively shaped and practically implemented in classical Athens. For the purpose of a clearer organization and presentation of the relevant material, the dissertation is structured into four parts. The first part (Chapters 1-2) presents general information concerning the public arbitral institution, such as the time of its establishment and the mandatory character of the public arbitration stage, the purpose served by its creation, and the advantages that resulted from its institutionalization. The second part (Chapters 3-6) deals with the subjects bound by the obligation to participate in public arbitration. Specifically, it addresses certain critical legal issues, including the necessary qualifications for appointing an Athenian citizen as a public arbitrator and the possible inclusion of thetes among the members of the public arbitral body, the lawful age of public arbitrators, the compulsory nature of their arbitral duty, the absence of a provision for their regular scrutiny, and the remuneration they received for the performance of their arbitral functions. The third part (Chapters 7-13) explores in detail various procedural aspects of the institution under examination. In particular, it thoroughly discusses the place where public arbitration was conducted and the element of publicity attached to it, the number of arbitral hearings and of the persons participating in them, as well as the possibility of renouncing public arbitration and submitting the dispute to private arbitrators. Furthermore, it describes the two distinct stages of public arbitration, the conciliatory/mediatory stage and the stage of adjudication. In relation to the second stage, the study investigates the possibility of raising the objection of παραγραφή before the public arbitrator and provides an extensive analysis of the different types of evidence invoked by the litigants during the arbitral hearing. The third part concludes with an examination of the legal notion of the main (κυρία) day, the application of the principle of equity in the formation of the arbitral judgment, and the oath-taking of public arbitrators. The fourth and final part (Chapters 14-16) focuses on the public arbitral decision itself. It examines the terminology and content of the arbitral verdict, the declaration of both litigants regarding its acceptance or non-acceptance, and its ratification by the competent magistrate. In addition, it describes the legal consequences of the public arbitral decision, distinguishing between those arising from its acceptance and those resulting from its non-acceptance and challenge through the legal remedy of εφεσις. The sixteenth and final chapter of the dissertation deals with the annulment of the public arbitral decision, which was effected following the successful exercise of the remedies of restitution in default or εισαγγελία.