Jamail Center for Legal Research

Rare Books & Special Collections

                  Property Law

Property was generally held by the the state or the local clan, and often dedicated to support specific purposes such as the ruler's< palace, a temple, an officeholder, or tribute payments. Land could be lost if left unused. There was some private ownership of land by members of the ruling class. 

Merchants on the road (right) and merchants' courts (left) (Historia de ... Nueva España).  

Merchants had their own court system, which enforced standard measures, theft in the market, fraud, and sale of stolen goods.  Goods of value and importance had to be sold within the marketplace to ensure payment of taxes.

Theft was considered one of the worst crimes by Aztec society. Punishment was death by strangulation if the theft occurred in the market or in the countryside, or if the items were of great value. For lesser offenses the thief made restitution by becoming the victim's slave. The chroniclers note that native homes had no doors and that burglary was very rare.