INTRODUCTION

The first part of the tripartite division of private law is the law of persons. As Justinian says, there is “little point in knowing the law if one knows nothing about the persons for whom it exists” (J.1.2.12). Persons, as we shall see, can be classified in various ways, and this affects the way they are treated by the law. The classification of persons depends on their personal status. In modern terms, therefore, the law of persons is the law of personal status or, broadly, speaking family law.