Arbitration in Ancient Greece

Abstract

Arbitration appears at the very dawn of Greek history. Homer described the following scene in the Iliad,1 a poem composed during the eighth century BC. He was thinking of his own lifetime, when society was moving from family vendetta to a lawful community. In Homer's account the killer of a man offered full compensation, but the representative (the next of kin usually) rejected any compensation. The dispute between the killer and the representative took place in public in the market square. The two then appealed to a man ‘versed in the law’ to give a decision. He presided while anyone who wished spoke in support of the one man or the other. Next, he entrusted the judgment to ‘the elders, sitting on polished stones in a sacred circle, who each in turn held the mace and gave his opinion’. No doubt a majority vote led to the decision....