Lex Fabia ( de plagio or de plagiariis )

Abstract A lex Fabia , likely to have been enacted between 66 and 63 bce , was the first Roman law that sanctioned what later became known as plagium . This law addressed the kidnapping, sale, and unlawful holding of Roman citizens and slaves. The first section sanctioned the abduction and sale of Roman citizens, while the second extended similar penalties to actions against another person's slave. Offenders had to act with malicious intent and against the victim's will. The penalty was typically a fine of fifty thousand sesterces, though some scholars suggest capital punishment was possible. The trial procedure under the law remains debated among scholars.