Justinian Code Law and Legal Definition
Justinian code is a compilation of imperial constitutions made by a commission consisting of ten persons. The commission was appointed by Justinian and Tribonian was the head of the commission. The code was published in A.D. 529. The commission carried out the project in February A.D. 528 through April 529. Justinian Code replaced all prior imperial law, but was in force only until A.D. 534. The code was replaced by the Codex Repetitae Praelectionis. In modern writings, the A.D. 534 version is the work referred to as the Justinian Code. The Justinian code is also called as Code of Justinian, Codex Justinianus, Codex Vetus (“Old Code”), and Codex Iustinianus Repetitae Praelectionis.
Tribonian was appointed to revise the Code in order to make it up to date. By the end of A.D. 534, Codex Repetitae Praelectionis, the new code, was promulgated and it is the only Code which survives to the present day. Later, further enactments were issued during the reign of Justinian and it was called Novellae Constitutiones. Justinian's different compilations were collectively called the Corpus Juris Civilis.
