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Simple English definitions for legal terms
Voconian law
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A quick definition of Voconian law:
Voconian law was a law in ancient Rome that was created to control inheritance, especially for women. It limited the amount of money or property that someone could receive as a gift or inheritance to be no more than what the heirs received. This law was later replaced by the Falcidian law. The Lex Voconia had three main provisions: (1) women could not inherit estates worth more than a certain amount, (2) only sisters of the deceased could inherit if there was no will, and (3) no one could receive more in a legacy than the heirs.
A more thorough explanation:
Voconian law is a law that was enacted in ancient Rome in 169 B.C. to regulate inheritance, especially by women. It capped the amount that anyone could receive as a legacy or gift in view of death at no more than the heirs took. This law was later superseded by the Falcidian law.
For example, if a person had three heirs and left behind a legacy of $300, each heir would receive $100. No one person, male or female, could receive more than the heir or all heirs together instituted in the last will.
The Voconian law was enacted to prevent women from inheriting too much wealth. It contained several provisions concerned with the law of succession, such as admitting only the sisters of the deceased to intestate succession among female agnates.