Editing Praetor (section)

==Praetura==
The elected praetor was a [[Curule chair|curule magistrate]], exercised ''[[imperium]]'', and consequently was one of the ''[[Magistratus|magistratus majores]]''. He had the right to sit in the ''[[sella curulis]]'' and wear the ''[[Toga#Varieties|toga praetexta]]''.<ref name=Livy7.1b>Livy, [[s:From the Founding of the City/Book 7#1|7.1]]</ref> He was attended by six [[lictor]]s. A praetor was a [[magistrate]] with ''[[imperium]]'' within his own sphere, subject only to the veto of the consuls (who outranked him).{{sfn|Nicholas|1975|p=4}}

The ''potestas'' and ''imperium'' (power and authority) of the consuls and the praetors under the [[Roman Republic|Republic]] should not be exaggerated. They did not use independent judgment in resolving matters of state. Unlike today's executive branches, they were assigned high-level tasks directly by senatorial decree under the authority of the [[SPQR]].

Livy describes the assignments given to either consuls or praetors in some detail. As magistrates, they had standing duties to perform, especially of a religious nature. However, a consul or praetor could be taken away from his current duties at any time to head a task force, and there were many, especially military. Livy mentions that, among other tasks, these executive officers were told to lead troops against perceived threats (domestic or foreign), investigate possible subversion, raise troops, conduct special sacrifices, distribute windfall money, appoint commissioners and even exterminate locusts. Praetors could delegate at will. The one principle that limited what could be assigned to them was that their duties must not concern them with ''minima'', "little things". They were by definition doers of ''maxima''. This principle of Roman law became a principle of later European law: ''[[De minimis|Non curat minima praetor]]'', that is, the details do not need to be legislated, they can be left up to the courts.