Family Life and the Code of Hammurabi
Under the Code of Hammurabi, men had considerable power over their families. Babylonian men could sell their wives or children into slavery in order to pay off their debts. They could also disinherit a son if they chose to. These measures were extreme and required men to justify their actions in a court of law. Men who wanted to sell their family members or disinherit their wives or children had to prove that it was necessary and, especially in the case of disinheriting a child, evidence of bad behavior. This procedure gave women and their children some protection from a clearly patriarchal society.