Nature of noxal actions and noxal liability

The article examines the nature of noxal actions and noxal liability in Roman law, showing that these actions preserved archaic ideas of personal vengeance rather than modern concepts of vicarious liability. Their central aim was to enable the direct liability of the wrongdoer—typically a slave or filius familias—through noxae deditio. Special rules such as noxa caput sequitur, the liberating effect of surrender, and the requirement that the master be without fault demonstrate the sui generis character of noxal liability. The study surveys classical sources and modern scholarly theories, highlighting the procedural and historical complexity of this institution.