ADVOCATE, among the Romans, a person skilled in their law, who undertook the defence of causes at the bar. The Roman advocates answered to one part of the office of a barrister in England, viz. the pleading part; for they never gave counsel, that being the business of the jurisconsulti.
The Romans, in the first ages of their state, held the profession of an advocate in great honour; and the seats of their bar were crowded with senators and consuls; they, whose voices commanded the people, thinking it an honour to be employed in defending them. They were styled comites, honorati, clarissimi, and even patroni; as if their clients were not less obliged to them than freed men to their masters. The bar was not at that time venal. Those who aspired to honours and offices took this way of gaining an interest in the people, and always pleaded gratis. But no sooner were luxury and corruption introduced into the commonwealth, than the bar became a sharer in them. Then it was that the senators let out their voices for pay, and zeal and eloquence were sold to the highest bidder. To put a stop to this abuse, the tribune Cincius procured a law to be passed, called from him Lex Cincia, whereby the advocates were forbidden to take any money of their clients. It had before this been prohibited the advocates to take any presents or gratuities for their pleading. The emperor Augustus added a penalty to it: notwithstanding which, the advocates played their part so well, that the emperor Claudius thought it an extraordinary circumstance, when he obliged them not to take above eight great festees, which are equivalent to about 641. sterling, for pleading each cause.
ADVOCATE is still used in countries and courts where the civil law obtains, for those who plead and defend the causes of clients trusted to them.
ADVOCATE of a city, in the German polity, a magistrate appointed in the emperor's name to administer justice.
ADVOCATE is more particularly used in church history, for a person appointed to defend the rights and revenues of a church or religious house. The word advocatus or advowee, is still retained for what we usually call the patron, or he who has the advowson, or right of presentation in his own name.
VOL. I. Part I.
Consistorial ADVOCATES; officers of the consistory at Rome who plead in all oppositions to the disposal of benefices in that court: they are ten in number.