Augustus and the Senate

Reduced from 1000 to 600

• Senatorial birth
• Periods of Military service
• 1 million sesterces
• Aug. could appoint non-senatorial rank
• Increased fines for non-attendance, attended himself
• Chose speakers at random
• Fewer sessions, 2 per month
• Aug., consuls, representatives of magistrates, 15 senators

Princeps and Senate could take action

• Public jury ran by equites, didn't deal with notorious cases
• Court to deal with adultury
• Jurymen increased, attention to selection
• Trial procedures improve, number of days trial could be herd increased
• Sped up restitution of property, jury of 5 in 35 days
• Civil cases heard by Praetors

Senatorial

• Consuls with senate as advisers
• Political cases - senators/wives/prominent people

Imperial

• Augustus + unofficial advisers
• Wide range of cases - parricide/forgery/murder

• Suetonius: 'the sight of this sad and ill-sorted rabble...order to its former size and repute by two acts of enrolement'

• Suetonius: 'this was intended to make all present alert'

• Res Gestae: 'I revised the role of the senate three times'

• Paterculus: 'The senatorial lists were revised strictly but not unkindly'