''Res communis'' is a concept or doctrine. The expression is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

term derived from

Roman law Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the '' Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...

that preceded today's concepts of the

commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons c ...

and common heritage of mankind. It has relevance in

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

and

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omniprese ...

. In the 6th century, the ''

Institutes An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations ( research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

'' of Justinian codified the relevant Roman law as: "By the law of nature these things are common to mankind – the air, running water, the sea, and consequently the shores of the sea." ''Res communis'' has gained new currency in environmental law, in terms of managing natural resources. The key concept is that the state is the trustee of communal natural resources and cannot alienate them into private ownership. Examples are Lake Michigan, Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong and Sydney Harbour. Biological examples of ''res communis'' include fish and mammals in

high seas The terms international waters or transboundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water (or their drainage basins) transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed region ...

. Rules for use of the continent

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

were based on ''res communis'' as was development of

space law Space law is the body of law governing space-related activities, encompassing both international and domestic agreements, rules, and principles. Parameters of space law include space exploration, liability for damage, weapons use, rescue effort ...

References

Roman law International law Legal rules with Latin names {{international-law-stub