ITHACA, N.Y. -- Ancient Roman laws and legal procedures have had a profound influence on the development of the modern legal system. Okko Behrends, one of Europe's foremost experts in classical Roman law and a Cornell University A.D. White Professor-at-Large, will explore the origins of the Roman legal influence during a public talk titled "The Author of the Classical Roman Law," Friday, Sept. 3, at 4:30 p.m. in Kaufmann Auditorium of Goldwin Smith Hall.

Behrends holds the chair of Roman Law, Civil Law and the History of Modern Private Law at the University of Göttingen, Germany. His areas of expertise ranges from the origins of Roman law in the early Roman Republic to the current German constitution, and his work also deals with Greek -- especially Hellenistic -- philosophy, says Hunter Rawlings, Cornell president emeritus and professor of classics.

"His scholarship is marked by a blending of realia -- laws and legal procedure -- with the philosophical arguments that support or challenge them," Rawlings says.

Behrends' expertise also extends to aspects of ancient life such as surveying land and legal rights, the quartering system, defeated non-citizen barbarians, mercenaries, grave robbery and tomb desecration. He will share his expertise with students in two Department of Classics courses during his first stay on campus.

For a list of Behrends' publications, see this Web site: http://www.gwdg.de/~ujrg/behrends.htm . For more information about Behrends lecture and visit, contact Rawlings by e-mail at hrr6@cornell.edu .