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The Green Bag
age,“ sex, family status, rank, social position, residence,l5 etc.
The distinction based on social posi tion depends always on the political history of the people and has an internal connection with previous facts concern ing the state. This is particularly true of the distinctions arising out of birth; thus, the nobility (higher, middle and
It is not necessary that legal systems shall create such interests. The ideals and necessities of mankind recognize
them before the law. Legal order under certain conditions invests such interests as are found to exist in fact with the protection necessary to transform such interests into legal advantages. The entities whose preterhuman interests are
lower), the common people, mancipated
in such manner protected are called
persons, and the so-called half-free and slaves. All these divisions are frequently
juristic (fictitious, artificial or moral)
separated by impassable barriers. Caste is of this nature. Social position arising out of calling or vocation also generates capacities; thus, ordinary citizens (Bt'ir ger), tradespeople, soldiers, the clergy, artisans, peasants. All these persons are
set apart in particular classes under special legal standards.
All persons are recognized as having capacity for rights-even though, as pointed out, this capacity may be of difierent grades—unless these persons
persons in contradistinction to natural persons. juristic persons are either aggregates of persons (universitates per
sonarum") or aggregates of things (uni versitates rerum).1a
Private law recognizes the following classes of juristic persons: — 1. The state, or the governing social entity, in its private legal relations. In this aspect the dominant entity does not authoritatively represent its inter ests by virtue of its attribute of sov ereignty. Its activity here is the same as
are regarded as things or slaves in the
that of any free citizen in the state in
lowest stages of bondage. These subjects
the satisfaction of private economic
of rights are called natural persons."
necessities.
There are, however, certain entities
which are not human beings and which still have interests to which the law assigns legal protection. In other words, legal systems recognize the possession of rights which are not interests of indi vidual persons but of other entities, or aggregates of persons or property. “B. G. B. distinguishes as follows: The period of minority up to the age of seven years; the period of minority in the strict sense, between the years of seven and twenty-one, in which there is limited disposing capacity (8. G. 8., secs. 106-113); and the period of majority beginning with the completion of the twenty-first year. Minors of the age of eighteen may receive a declaration of majority (B. G. 3., secs. 3-5). l‘B.G.l3., secs. 7-11. l"The first section of B. G. B. provides: "Capacity of persons for rights begins with the completion of birth." This excludes every species of corporal ownership and bondage. Capacity for rights con tinues until death, or until legal declaration of death (B. G. 8., secs. 13-20).
In this activity a state is
called the fiscus," or treasury, in con tradistinction to the activity in which the state represents public interests of
the community by sovereign law in the governing sense (res M500). 2. Public communities within the state, which represent public interests: thus,
municipalities,
parishes,
towns,
provinces and similar communities. 3. Aggregates of persons, such as as sociations (corporations)2o arising from joint concurrence or agreement, which have legal interests, in that the law gives
them a legal position. According to the conditions of the legal recognition of their juristic personality, such corpora 11B. G. 13., secs. 21-79. "Foundations (Stiftungen) and institutions (3.63. secs. 80-89). "8.6.8., sees. 89, 928, 1936, 1942, 1966. 20B. G. B., secs. 21, 55-79.
