Introduction
The rule of law in
Arc is a complex system of overlapping jurisdictions which has evolved since the Vannic era, as Protectate law, Aruhvian law, Chamber law (from the
The Azure Chamber ) and District law combine to present Arcites with a complex maze of rules to navigate. It is easy for wealthy citizens to flout certain aspects of the city’s rules and regulations or to buy their way out of trouble in Arc’s corrupted court system.
The two most powerful forces in Arcish law, which often battle for primacy with one another are the Protectorate and the Aruhvian Church. The Azure Chamber, which ensures the rights of the merchant class of Arc has yet to be able to establish its powers to the extent of the other two bodies, but has ambitions to supplant the church as Aruhvianism’s power goes into decline. All three bodies employ small armies of scholars and lawyers to debate where one legal authority ends and another begins, and it is not uncommon for an accused man or woman to be arrested by the Protectorate, only to then be passed over to the Archimandrite’s Court of the Aruhvian Church for trial.
Protectorate Law
The Supreme Law of the Protectorate was written in the year -899, six months after the Protectorate was established following the fall of the Empire. It was written in order to favour Arc’s bankers and merchants and to end the power of Arc’s nobles, it abolished noble titles and privileges and established the idea of citizenship. The law predates the creation of the Oboline, which has had the effect of making citizenship dependent on the repayment of debt (the Oboline Laws were introduced by the Azure Chamber, see below). The Supreme Law of the Protectorate, above all things, was a tool to protect the wealth of Arc, and the protections offered to its citizens were a secondary consideration. The law codifies punishments for crimes against property (theft, smuggling), but crimes against the person are more complex. When the laws were written, the Protectorate did not have enough militia to police the streets of the city exclusively, and so had to allow the powerful and wealthy the option of defending themselves. The long war between the nobility and the merchant classes was all but won and the nobles had been purged from Arc, but the city was still a turbulent and violent place, meaning that Arc’s wealthy demanded exemptions from the Supreme Law if they were forced to fight or kill to defend themselves. These exemptions still exist, and for generations Arc’s wealthy have been able to act with impunity. An Arcite who wields a ‘Sword of the Protectorate’ will be unlikely to face consequences for most of their actions, as long as there is some pretext that they are acting in self defence. The sword in question is one where the Protector’s own seal is stamped, carved or engraved into the hilt (forging this is a hanging offence). Wealthy Arcites duel with such swords or use them to enforce their own power by killing with impunity.
Aruhvian Law
The
The Aruhvian Church in Arc of the Archimandrite of Arc, whilst in decline, still has significant power, with its own courts, bailiffs, guards, judges and ‘Tamsherys’ - the men and women tasked with carrying out punishments on those found guilty (named after the Archimandrite Tamshere, whose lust for bloodshed was legendary). In -884, an agreement between the church and the Protectorate, the Nyman Compact, was signed which gave the church powers to prosecute doctrinal crimes such as heresy and ‘speaking falsehoods’ as well as censorship over published materials and powers to investigate those reading or writing about ‘depraved knowledge’. This applied to any scholar caught with books or scrolls that discussed magic, other worlds and dimensions, or any written material that contradicted the Aruhviad. The Archimandrite’s investigators, the Nurayan Bishops, would investigate and persecute those who defied the church’s doctrinal censorship. The Bishops vanished during the Sundering, and instead the church is served by the Nurayan Order, men and women whose natural sadism made them poor choices for other Aruhvian monastic traditions, and who justify their violence by convincing themselves that they are upholding the Keeper’s will. Few now among them believe that the Keeper still lives, and many have accepted that the only will they serve is that of the Archimandrite of Arc.
Chamber Law
In many ways, one of the most ruthless and merciless branches of the Arcish legal system stems from the Azure Chamber. The one branch of government more than any other which protects the rights of the banks in Arc has inflicted through the Oboline laws an immense amount of suffering on its citizens. The laws established how citizenship could be removed due to an Arcite being in debt and the ritualised torment that can be inflicted on them as a result. Because the value of the Arcish Levat is based on the ability of Arcites to repay their debts, coercion of debtors plays a significant part of Chamber Law. The Azure Chamber pays ‘Penny Heralds’ to walk the streets with a monthly debtors roll. On this parchment document, the names of recent debtors facing the threat of the Oboline are read out. This serves as a warning to others and it means that the family of the debtor is forever associated with the shame of their relative’s profligacy. From the ‘date of first reading’ the family has nine days to pay off the entire debt, plus an additional ‘Protectors Bounty’ to save their loved one from the torment that awaits them.
Chamber Law also protects the property of the merchants and traders in Arc. In order to be covered by Chamber Law (which has greater powers than District Law, see below), one must be a member of the Azure Chamber, or part of a group represented at the chamber. Protectorate Law ensures that common thieves are punished for stealing, but Chamber Law ensures that merchants cannot steal from, or undermine each other. Traders, merchants, bankers and guilds that seek to undermine one another can take their disputes to the Azure Chamber, which employs investigators called Barreltappers (named after the practice of tapping wine and ale barrels to see if they had been deliberately underfilled by brewers - a common practice in the Arc tavern trade), to examine who is at fault. Hefty fines, flogging and the pillory have all been used as punishments for traders who ignore Chamber Law.
District Law
District Law is the most direct and immediate form of enforcement in Arc, but whether it can be thought of as justice is debatable. In districts like
Storm Row or the
Dures Road , mercenaries are given the right to operate as Wardens of the Peace by the Protectorate. Several groups of wardens might operate in the same district, each paid for by a different group of merchants to protect their property. They spend most of their time catching and beating thieves, and during the night will walk the darkened streets with storm lamps (this does little to prevent night time crime, but reassures the residents of the district that they are safe). Wardens of the Peace tend to have a poor reputation, they are frequently corrupt, taking payments from gangsters to ignore certain activities, and they are viewed by the city’s poor as bullies in the pay of the merchants. Some wardens have become so established in a district, they look upon themselves as the defacto rulers of that particular area. When new companies of wardens are formed, they often clash with established ones and street fights occur. The charters issued by the Protectorate to companies of wardens give them the right to enforce the law in an arbitrary manner within their district, though anyone who can declare their citizenship or who has any significant social standing will tend to be left alone by the wardens. The wardens have no power to sentence, have no jails or gallows of their own, but can decide arbitrarily who they think is right or wrong in a dispute where the sum in question is less than the value of one Levat, and deliver a beating or flogging arbitrarily.
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