Abstract:
At the outset it is important to state briefly, the nature and the character of the Modern Roman Dutch law and the countries in which it is administered.
The Roman Dutch law, the Common law of the Dutch was the system which obtained in the province of Holland When we speak of Roman Dutch law, we mean not a law common to the whole of the United Netherlands but specifically the law peculiar to the Province of Holland. from the middle of the 15th to the early years of the 19th century. Lee, Introduction to Roman Dutch Law, 5th ed, P2. Like other allied systems that arose on the continent of Europe, the Roman Dutch law was based on Germanic custom, and it was substantially modified and supplemented by Roman law, as represented in the Institutes of Justinian, the Digest, the Code and the Novels Schreiner, The Contribution of English Law to South African Law; and the Rule of Law in South Africa. P.5. Thus, this system of law was derived from two sources, i.e. Germanic custom and Roman law. This system was gradually developed during the 17th and 18th centuries, through the writings of practicing lawyers, teachers of law and the decisions of the Courts of Holland and its associated provinces of the United Netherlands Ibid. P5. Jurists from other parts of the Continent, like Pothier, Savigny and Winscheid contributed a great deal to this system.
