Praetor (/ˈpriːtər/ PREE-tər, Classical Latin: [ˈprae̯tɔr]), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected magistratus (magistrate), assigned to discharge various duties. The functions of the magistracy, the praetura (praetorship), are described by the adjective itself: the praetoria potestas (praetorian power), the praetorium imperium (praetorian authority), and the praetorium ius (praetorian law), the legal precedents established by the praetores (praetors). Praetorium, as a substantive, denoted the location from which the praetor exercised his authority, either the headquarters of his castra, the courthouse (tribunal) of his judiciary, or the city hall of his provincial governorship. The minimum age for holding the praetorship was 39 during the Roman Republic, but it was later changed to 30 in the early Empire.
Praetors in the context of Constitution of the Late Roman Empire
The constitution of the late Roman Empire was an unwritten set of guidelines and principles passed down, mainly through precedent, which defined the manner in which the late Roman Empire was governed. As a matter of historical convention, the late Roman Empire emerged from the Roman Principate (the early Roman Empire), with the accession of Diocletian in AD 284, his reign marking the beginning of the Tetrarchy. The constitution of the Dominate outrightly recognized monarchy as the true source of power, and thus ended the facade of dyarchy, in which emperor and Senate governed the empire together.
Diocletian's reforms to the Imperial government finally put an end to the period when the old Republican magistracies (e.g. consuls and praetors) held real powers. From then, the consuls had almost no real duties beyond that of presiding at Senate meetings and the duties of the lesser magistrates were effectively just hosting various games, e.g. chariot racing. Most other lesser magistracies simply disappeared.
View the full Wikipedia page for Constitution of the Late Roman EmpirePraetors in the context of Lex Baebia
Lex Baebia was one of many laws enacted during the Roman Republic to combat ambitus (bribery or corruption) in the electoral process.
There is some confusion over the exact nature of this law, namely whether it was indeed a single law or two. Lex Baebia de praetoribus mandated the election of four and then six praetors in successive years. This law, however, was never observed. A second, Lex Baebia de ambitu, involved combating electoral bribery. Both laws had a similar purpose. The laws were championed by the plebeian consul Marcus Baebius Tamphilus in 181 BC.
View the full Wikipedia page for Lex Baebia