Quintilian and the Law

Abstract

How did Quintilian regard the relationship between rhetoric and law? It is only in the last book of his Institutio oratoria that Quintilian deals with this question. In 12.3 he states that the well-educated orator must have a broad knowledge of the law so that he will not be dependent on information from a legal expert. In the course of the book, Quintilian shows that he himself was well acquainted with Roman law for he often explains rhetorical technique by giving legal examples, and these examples deal with a wide variety of topics and refer to a wide variety of sources. The topics include criminal law and private law, particularly the law of succession, and legal procedure. The sources range from speeches by Cicero to fictitious laws and cases. Quintilian regarded rhetoric as superior to law but he will have agreed with Cicero that rhetoric and law were partners in dignity.