Legal Definitions - expilator

An expilator refers to an individual, particularly in the context of ancient Roman law, who unlawfully seizes or plunders property belonging to another. This term describes someone who acts as a robber, spoiler, or despoiler, taking possessions through force, stealth, or exploitation.

• Example 1: During the aftermath of a successful military campaign, a mercenary soldier enters a captured town and systematically loots homes, taking valuable jewelry, coins, and artwork from the inhabitants, despite official orders against such actions.

  Explanation: The mercenary soldier is acting as an expilator because they are plundering and spoiling the property of the town's residents, unlawfully seizing their possessions.

• Example 2: Along a remote stretch of a Roman trade route, a band of highwaymen ambushes a merchant caravan, forcibly taking all their valuable cargo, including exotic spices, textiles, and precious metals, leaving the merchants with nothing.

  Explanation: The highwaymen are expilators as they are robbers and plunderers, unlawfully seizing the merchant's goods through an act of force.

• Example 3: A powerful and unscrupulous provincial governor, using his authority, sends his armed guards to a wealthy citizen's estate and forcibly confiscates their entire harvest of olives and grapes, claiming a fabricated debt that was never owed.

  Explanation: The governor, through his agents, acts as an expilator by plundering and spoiling the citizen's property (the harvest) under false pretenses, effectively robbing them of their livelihood.