Lex Libri

The Lex Libri is the founding document of modern Kalderani law. It contains legal principles and a list of crimes, and their application is administered by courts, law benches, and justices of the peace.

Extracts from the Lex Libri

SECTION A-1 — The King

The Kingdom of Kalderesh and its lands, everything on it, everything beneath it, and the sky above it, belongs to the King, who shall be a natural person in the lineage of the Kalders.

SECTION A-2 — Citizenship

A citizen of Kalderesh is defined as:

[1]. A natural person who accompanied Anselmet of Kalder on the June Exodus and who’s name is listed in the Founding Scrolls

[2]. Those natural persons resident in Kalderesh at the time of the June Exodus and are listed in the Founding Scrolls

[3]. A natural person born to a person as in [1] or [2] above or in [3] as defined here

[4]. A natural person who immigrates to Kalderesh, pursuiant to subsection A-17(4).

SECTION A-3 — Rights

A right is defined as “the proper and lawful incorporation of an attribute, as set out above, into the essence and being of a natural person”. Only natural persons have rights. The King may revoke any or all rights of a natural person, upon royal decree.

The rights of a citizen are to include:

[1]. The right to exist.

[2]. The right to a quality life.

[3]. The right to freedom.

[4]. The right to create and/or own tangible things.

[5]. The right to create and/or own intangible things.

SECTION A-8 — Land Ownership

All land in Kalderesh by default belongs to the King. Under certain conditions, as set out below, full-use land rights may be held by others.

[1]. Only a citizen of Kalderesh, who is of legal age, may own property in Kalderesh.

[2]. Certain demarcated tracts of land, as set out in subsection B-1(1), are the property of the Crown.

[3]. Certain demarcated tracts of land, as set out in subsection B-3(1) to B-3(5), are the property of the Church.

[4]. Certain demarcated tracts of land, as set out in subsection B-4(1), are the property of the Druids of the Warsh of the Guardians.

[5]. Certain demarcated tracts of land, as set out in subsection B-5(1), are the property of the Jashari Barbarians and their natural descendents.

[6]. Any land not demarcated as in [2] –[5] above, may be claimed by any citizen who has the right to ownership as set out in Section A-3(4) and pursuiant to the conditions as set out in Section A-81.

[7]. Lawful land owners may transfer ownership of such lands to the Crown, the Church, or another citizen.

SECTION A-81 — Autonomous Lawful Appropriation of Land

No land that is listed in Section A-8(2) to A-8(5) may be appropriated. Only land as describe in Section A-8(6) may be appropriated by a citizen pursuiant to the following stipulations:

[1]. That the citizen is of legal age, or has been granted the status of legal age by the King

[2]. That the tract of land be demarcated, by visual boundary markers as proscribed by the Surveyor’s Guild, for a period of 360 consecutive days.

[3]. That the exact position of the boundary markers are indicated on a suitable map and that said map is deposited at a Cartographer’s Guild.

[4]. That the prospective appropriator draw up a clear statement of intent, describing the use or uses the land will be put to.

[5]. That the prospective appropriator undersign the map in (3) above and the statement of intent in (4) above, with their natural name.

[6]. That the prospective appropriator advertise their intention by employing the services of the Guild of Heraldry for proclomation, as set out in Section F-5.

[7]. Immediately following (6) there is a period of 360 days in which public comment from any citizen is invited, both in support of, and in opposition to, the proposed claim. Objections may be raised against the proposal on the grounds of (1), (2), (3), (4), and/or (5) above. Qualified objections, as decided by the Royal Court of Camfor, will void the entire proposal.

[8]. That the prospective appropriator, once receiving public approval, has removed all threats and nuisances from the demarcated land for a period of 360 consecutive days, and has demonstrated the ongoing capacity to maintain this peaceful status.

[9]. At the end of the period described in (8), the land is to be inspected by a member of the Surveyor’s Guild or an appointed agent, who will issue a Statement of Approval or Statement of Dismissal.

[10]. Following approval, the prospective appropriator has to lodge copies of the documents generated in (5), (6), (7), and (9), with the Lower Court in Camfor. This Court will issue a Deed of Ownership, upon receipt of which the prospective appropriator becomes the Autonomous Lawful Owner of the land as set out in (3) and (4) above.

[11]. The prospective appropriator is liable for all fees, taxes, levies, duties, costs, charges, and/or surcharges, as may be incured in following the proscripts set out above. Failure to settle any such debts within seven (7) days will automatically void the entire proposal.

Importance of the Lex Libri

This 46,88 interview with Cathy Kariasera (Londesh Senior Judge pro tem, Judicial lawyer & Civil lawyer) explains the significance and impact of the Lex Libri:

"Kalderani law is, in my learned opinion, the most advanced on Tem. Kalderesh is a bone fide kingdom, and Section A-1 of the Lex Libri states that “[t]he Kingdom of Kalderesh and its lands, everything on it, everything beneath it, and the sky above it, belongs to the King”.

"Read only up to here, one would consider Kalderesh open to all the corruptions that inevitably befall kingdoms all across Tem. Indeed, it was exactly this experience that our founders were subject to, which led to their peaceful revolution and exodus out of Malanthea.

"Before their leave-taking, Lord Anselmet and his councillors in secret drew up the Royal Bond, which is essentially the first Kalderani legal document. In it, the powers and duties of the King are established, as well as the rights of the citizens, thus binding the Kalder family to service and mutual loyalty.

"By clearly stating the rights of the citizen, the corruption and oppression that inevitably plague other royal legislatures is not possible.

"This is why Section A-2 of the Lex Libri defines “a citizen of Kalderesh” and goes on in Section A-3 to define the rights of a citizen. A right is defined as “the proper and lawful incorporation of [attributes] into the essence and being of a natural person”. Thus, only natural persons have rights. These are:

1. The right to exist.

2. The right to a quality life.

3. The right to freedom.

4. The right to create and/or own tangible things.

5. The right to create and/or own intangible things.

"The King may temporarily or permanently revoke one or more rights of a citizen, pursuant to a royal decree."

See also

• Oath of the Seven