The fonds covers the period from the middle 16th century to the beginning of the 19th century, and the data in the fonds are related to the expenditures of the Rector's Palace, i.e., the costs for which the Rector personally was accountable for. Since his term of office lasted only a month, the expenses listed were shown monthly. The expenses were checked by the so-called Deputati alla Detta, or elected members of the Minor Council. The list of ongoing permanent costs of the Palace changed over time and the expenses mostly concerned the related costs of Holy Masses held in the Chapel of the Rector's Palace, alms for various purposes, as well as the expenses for the organization of processions, Holy Masses, and celebrations of religious holidays. The data shows that the money was regularly allocated from the treasury of the Rector's Palace for the costs of lighting and various repairs. According to the data regarding prison expenses, the Rector's Palace would pay for the expenses of the arrest and escort of suspects, the treatment and maintenance of prisoners in need, the execution of sentences, and the burial of deceased prisoners. The soldiers of the Rector's Palace received salaries and compensation for clothes and straw mattresses from the treasury of the Palace. The expenditures of the state offices were also covered, such as the expenses for paper, parchment, bookbinding, ink, candles, and lighting oil. The expenses of the Republic stated in the last three decades show data on the financial support that was given to both Christianised Jewish and Orthodox believers. So-called Separate section of the volumes of this fonds lists the expenses of locksmiths, mostly related to the dungeons, and the extraordinary expenses, which mostly refer to the expenses of the stay of distinguished Ottoman guests in Dubrovnik. The treasury of the Rector's Palace also paid for the cleaning of the streets from various impurities and for the removal of dead animals, as well as for the costs of the postal service (couriers and shipping). Money was also allocated for the costs of anti-plague measures.

The fonds contains only a small amount of data on Jewish people. The references mainly relate to financial support provided for the maintenance of Christianised Jews and of those Jews who worked as state bookbinders. The information on the financial support that the state provided for Christianised Jewish women and men can be found in the documents from the last three decades of the 18th century. For example, according to the data, a certain Jewish woman Mande, the daughter of a Christianised Jew Antun Ambonetti (Samuel Ambonetti), also referred to in the documents as Mande Bonette, received through 1776/1777 the financial support of two grossetti per day (e.g., vol. 78, f. 41). There is also reference that a stretcher was paid once from the state treasury on which an unnamed Jewish woman was taken first to the archbishop and then to a convent (vol. 53, ff. 6v, 8). Moshe and Vital Fermi, and Baruch and Solomon Vitali are also referenced to as state bookbinders. The data shows that the Palace treasury also supplied offices at the Rector's Palace with paper and bound sheets of paper for writing as well as restored damaged books and documents between the late 17th century and the 80s of the 18th centuries. As for other data on Jewish people in this fonds, there are some minor references to Jewish craftsmen who, on several occasions, carried out various repairs in the Rector's Palace, (e.g., covering the table in the office of the Public Notary with leather and window repairing). The documents also show evidence that, while they were quarantined in Lazarettos and other quarantine areas, prominent Ottoman guests were treated by the Dubrovnik state and supplied with daily necessities. According to the data, the Jewish community of Dubrovnik were also involved in this custom, providing necessary pieces of furniture and other items for their stay. Several records showed that Jews received compensation for destroyed items from the treasury of the Rector's Palace. The money from the Palace treasury was also used to pay for the repairs of the keys and the entrance door to the ghetto.

The fonds contains appeals submitted to the Senate and the Minor Council. According to the data available in volumes 2, 3 and 5, the fonds contains data on appeals accepted by the Senate or the Minor Council. The judgments appealed were mainly in the field of civil law. Other volumes contain very brief information: the date of the decision of the Minor Council or the Senate, the names of the parties in the dispute to whose judgment has been appealed, and the names of judges (consuls) and other civil officials, such as customs officers, who issued the judgment on appeal. The volumes cover the period from the 40s till the 60s of the 15th centuries and from the mid-16th century to the 30s of the 18th century.

There is only a small number of Jews referenced in this fonds. These are mostly members of Jewish families permanently residing in Dubrovnik, such as Abendana, Abuaf, Altarac, Ambonetti, Cabiglio, Cohen, Cohen Camargo, Costantini, Danon, Esperiel, Ferro, Franco, Levi, Luzzena, Maestro, Nahmias, Oef, Pappo, Pardo (i.e., vol. 7, ff. 3v). No further details of verdicts and appeals that were submitted were recorded.

The fonds contains records of confiscations ordered by the Civil Court at the request of the plaintiff. The preserved registers of these decisions were created in the period from the 60s to the beginning of the 19th century. The fonds contains various data on Jewish people, and there are approximately thirty references per volume, which are relevant for the analysis of their business in Dubrovnik. The records primarily reference to confiscations that were made, at the request of Jews, and were ordered by the court to either Jews or Christians. The fonds contains references to some members of Dubrovnik Jewish families such as Baraffael, Campos, Cohen, Costantino, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Pardo, Russo, Terni, Tolentino, Venturra, Vitali. According to the data, money, jewellery, and merchandise were the most confiscated items.

Lawsuits in the civil court and the first testimonies of plaintiffs, defendants and witnesses were registered in the books of the fonds Intentiones Cancellariae (HR-DADU-22). If it was deemed necessary, the Civil Court would continue with the court proceedings by hearing prosecutors, defendants, and witnesses. If these were movable property proceedings, the hearings would be then recorded in the volumes of this fonds, which covers the period from the 70s of the 15th centuries to the beginning of the 19th century. The books in the fonds are divided in two parts: Mobilia ordinaria and Mobilia extraordinaria. If the proceedings were terminated by reaching a verdict, the information about the verdict was recorded on the margins. Using this system, it is easy to find a specific court judgement in the fonds of judgments of the Civil Court (Sententiae Cancellariae; HR-DADU-18).

The fonds is important for the research of the business life of Dubrovnik Jews and the types of their business cooperation with their Christian fellow citizens. The fonds contains data on some famous people in Jewish history, such as Isac Ergas (the business representative of Gracia Mendes in Dubrovnik), Isaac's brother Samuel, and Jacob Coen de Herrera (the brother of Abraham Coen de Herrera). The data of the fonds mainly relate to Jews who were living in Dubrovnik, and belonged to families such as Abeatar, Abenun, Abuaff, Almoslino, Altarac, Ambonetti, Arari, Azubi, Bensahen, Campos, Cittanova, Coen, Costantini, Danon, Esperiel, Fermo, Franco, Gaon, Israel, Lanciano, Levi, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Maestro, Miranda, Oef (Ohev), Pappo, Pardo, Penso, Piade, Ribero, Russo, Salama, Saralvo, Sarfatin, Terni, Tobi, Tolentino, Valenzin, Vitali. To a certain extent, this fonds can also be seen as relevant for the historical reconstruction of Jewish business and trading network in the Balkans and the Mediterranean, since the names of Jewish merchants from Italian and Ottoman cities, such as the Penso family from Venice and Adagno and Baruch from Belgrade, occasionally are referenced to in the Civil Court proceedings and documents (i.e., vol. 54, f. 5v).

The lawsuits addressed to the Civil Court and the first statements of plaintiffs, defendants and witnesses were registered in the volumes of the fonds Intentiones Cancellariae (HR-DADU-22). If it was deemed necessary, the Civil Court would continue with the proceedings by hearing prosecutors, defendants, and witnesses. If these were real estate proceedings, the hearings would be then recorded in the books of this fonds, which covers the period from the mid-15th century to the early 19th century. The volumes of this fonds consist of two parts: Stabilia ordinaria and Stabilia extraordinaria. Some proceedings were terminated with a final verdict. The date of the verdict and the page number of the sheet of paper on which the verdict was entered, are noted on the margins of the document. This procedure makes it easier to find the actual judgement in the fonds of the civil court sentences (Sententiae Cancellariae; HR-DADU-18).

There is very little reference to Jewish people in this fonds. Nevertheless, the references found are still significant since, according to these references, Jews also acted asrepresentatives of Christian defendants. For example, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Ruben Vita Ambonetti repeatedly appeared as a representative of a sea captain Bartul Pezer (e.g., vol. 235, ff. 17v-19v).

From the 70s of the 16th centuries, the Criminal Court (established in 1459) began to systematically keep the registers Diversa et possessio de criminalibus and they were kept until the beginning of the 19th century. The registers contain court decisions made in accordance with the request submitted by the plaintiff, and sometimes ex officio. The fonds is characterized by decisions in which the court forbade the defendant to communicate with the plaintiff, either in person or through an intermediary, either by actions or with words (Ital. né per sé, né per interposte persone, né in fatti, né in parole), which was done to prevent escalation of the conflict. Until the judgement was publicly announced, the court would often confiscate disputed items or documents from the defendants. These facts were also recorded in the volumes of this fonds.

The fonds contains a large variety of information about Jews. The research shows that in slightly more than one third of the recorded cases the content of the documents indicates the existence of court prohibition of the communication between a defendant and a plaintiff. These decisions were made in equal numbers at the request of Jews against Jews, or at the request of Jews against other non-Jewish citizens. Also, the fonds contains orders for the eviction of tenants, bans of activities which could cause any damage to neighbour, bans on construction work and orders to maintain peace and order in the Jewish community. The fonds also contains lawsuits for physical and verbal violence. If the defendant did not comply with the court decision registered in the fonds Diversi e Possesso de Criminale, the plaintiff could sue the defendant again in regular proceedings by invoking that decision. Some notable Jewish people who are referenced to in this fonds are: Didacus Pyrrhus, David Coen de Herrera - father of Abraham Coen de Herrera, Zvi Esconasi, a famous rabbi of the Ashkenazi Jewish community in Amsterdam, who also was a rabbi in Sarajevo for a certain period (c. 1686- c. 1697) (vol. 19, f. 220v). The fonds also contains the will of Samson from the Peloponnese, which he registered in Dubrovnik in 1571 (vol. 4, f. 16). Generally, the fonds mainly references to members of Dubrovnik Jewish families such as: Abenun, Ambonetti, Angiolo, Asser, Azubi, Baruch, Bencastiel, Bensassen, Bueno, Campos, Chabiglio, Cohen, Costantini, Ergas, Esperiel, Fermo, Franco, Israel, Janni, Levi Mandolfo, Lima, Luzzena, Maestro, Miranda, Nahmias, Oef, Pappo, Pardo, Penso, Russo, Salama, Saralvo, Terni, Tolentino, Valenzin, Vitali, Volterra.

The fonds consists of registers of criminal convictions of the Criminal Court (established in 1459) and the accompanying alphabetical indexes and covers the period from the 15th century to the beginning of the 19th century. Criminal convictions reached after 1667 have been fully preserved, and those of earlier times have been preserved partially. Usually, at the end of each conviction there is a reference code of the corresponding lawsuit and investigation procedure, which were entered in the registers of Lamenta Criminalia (HR-DADU-20) and Lamenta de criminali (HR-DADU-21). As a result, it is much easier to get information about complete court proceedings: from filing a lawsuit to reaching a judgement. It is a characteristic of the Dubrovnik Criminal Court that it rarely rendered judgements, most likely because most disputes ended in conciliation of the warring parties.

The fact that the Criminal Court rarely rendered judegements is also visible in cases involving Jewish people. An analysis of criminal cases in which Jews appear either in the role of prosecutors or defendants has provided the following outcome: the percentage of convictions in lawsuits where Jews would sue other Jews and the percentage in lawsuits where Jews would sue other non-Jewish citizens is almost identical (7.64% and 7.83%). The percentage of final verdicts in lawsuits of non-Jewish citizens against Jews is slightly higher (10.52%). As expected, the highest percentage of verdicts is in lawsuits rendered ex officio (27.90%). In most verdicts, the sentence was imprisonment or a fine and the convict often had the right to choose between two options. In addition to some prison sentences and fines, there is also a reference to one penal labour case, several cases of corporal punishments, or cases of public humiliation, which were reached in cases of theft and fornication (e.g., vol. 5, f. 119). In the history of the Dubrovnik Republic, there is only one record to death penalty pronounced to Jewish people. This is the case of a convert named Benvenisti Nasci (Isaac, the son of Abraham) from Ferrara, a cousin of the famous Joseph Nassi, who was sentenced to death in 1571 for murder of a convert Menachem Maraz (vol. 20, ff. 90, 90v). The fonds mostly references to some members of Dubrovnik Jewish families such as Ambonetti, Angeli, Ascoli, Asser, Baraffael, Bueno, Campos, Cohen, Costantini, Fermo, Forte, Janni, Levi, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Maestro, Pardo, Penso, Russo, Terni, Tolentino, Valenzin, Vitali, Volterra.

The fonds contains registers with letters of applications and first statements in civil litigations dating to the 80s of the 14th century, mid-15th century and those dating to the period between the 70s of the 16th century and the beginning of the 19th century, which were first settled by Curia maior and Curia minor, and then by civilian judges (consuls). The data show that in the 13th and 14th centuries, civil and criminal cases were settled by Curia Maior and Curia Minor (for disputes worth up to 5 perpers), two legal bodies that consisted of members of the Minor Council (iudices). The central position in the judicial council until the 15th century was held by the Rector. The Civil Court was established in 1416, and initially there were six judges, and later their number decreased. The most common topics of litigations are found to be disagreements over the payment of rents, rental of real estate, arable land and other land, or disagreements over construction and remodelling, division of property, loans, etc. If it was deemed necessary, the proceedings would continue with a further examination of prosecutors, defendants, and witnesses. The statements in real estate litigations were entered in the Stabilia books (HR-DADU-25), and those related to litigations on movable property were entered in the books Mobilia (HR-DADU-26).

The fonds contains significantly less information about Jews if compared to the records of the Criminal Court. The data of the fonds are important for researching business affairs of Jewish people both in Dubrovnik, and in the Ottoman Empire, as well as in the countries of the Apennine Peninsula. The topic matters of the applications are mostly unpaid debts and trade disputes, or problems with the delivery of trade goods to Dubrovnik and their shipment to Italian ports. The fonds contains some references to Jewish women, widows, and fatherless girls. These women would defend their rights and their property, most usually from other family members such as their male in-laws, in person, or through their guardians (i.e., vol. 60, ff. 90v-91v). The fonds contains data on famous figures from Jewish history such as Isac Ergas, who was the business representative for Gracia Mendes and conducted all her affairs in Dubrovnik, as well as his brother Samuel, and Abraham Coen de Herrera and his brother Jacob Coen de Herrera (i.e., vol. 13, f. 161). The data of the fonds mainly reference to Jews who were living in Dubrovnik and belonged to families Abeatar, Abenun, Abuaff, Almoslino, Altarac, Ambonetti, Arari, Azubi, Bensahen, Campos, Cittanova, Coen, Costantini, Danon, Esperiel, Fermo, Franco, Gaon, Israel, Lanciano, Levi, Levi Mandolfo, Luzzena, Maestro, Miranda, Oef (Ohev), Pappo, Pardo, Penso, Piade, Ribero, Russo, Salama, Saralvo, Sarfatin, Terni, Tobi, Tolentino, Valenzin, Vitali. The fonds could also be important to a certain extent for the reconstruction of the Jewish business network in the Balkans and the Mediterranean since the names of Jewish merchants from Italian and Ottoman cities are occasionally referenced to in the Civil Court proceedings. The members of families like Zonana, or Benvenisti and Galante from Sofia, Maestro and Tobi from Belgrade, or Franco and Pappo from Venice are also referenced in the fonds.

In addition to the registers Lamenta de intus (HR-DADU-21.1) and Lamenta de foris (HR-DADU-21.2), registers of this fonds were also kept, containing lawsuits for criminal offenses committed inside and outside the city walls, that were recorded in the period from the 70s of the 14th centuries, to the 70s of the 17th centuries. Criminal cases were initially tried by Curia Maior and Curia Minor and, from 1459, by the Criminal Court. The entries in the documents of the fonds consist of a lawsuit initiated by a private person or the state (ex officio). Witnesses were listed and, if necessary, their written testimonies were also added. The records in this series mainly relate to cases of physical violence, verbal violence, and property crimes. It is characteristic of the Dubrovnik Criminal Court that it rarely rendered judgements, most likely because most disputes terminated with conciliation of the warring parties. Some of the judgements were recorded at the end of the case, and some were entered in special books in the Criminalia Fonds (HR-DADU-23). Not all legal decisions or judgements had been preserved for the period before 1667.

Similar to the series Lamenta de intus (HR-DADU-21.1), this series provides abundant information about Jews who came to Dubrovnik from the Apennine Peninsula and from the areas of the Ottoman Empire. It is an excellent source for researching all aspects of everyday life of the Dubrovnik Jewish community in the 16th century. It also provides an opportunity to researchers to analyse the relations of Dubrovnik Jews with both: their fellow citizens and the city authorities. As for significant figures in Sephardic history, it should be noted that the series mentions Abraham Coen de Herrera and his father David Coen de Herrera (vol. 16, f. 253v; vol. 17, f. 127). There are many references to Jewish families the members of which lived both in Dubrovnik and in Italian and Ottoman cities (e.g., Abeatar, Abravanel, Abuaf, Albachari, Alfarin, Amadio, Bencastiel, Benmaior, Bensassen, Cabiglio, Camargo, Celebi, Cidi, Coduto, Cohen, Criado, Cussi, Danon, Ergas, Esperiel, Formon, Gaon, Israel, Lanciano, Levi, Lindo, Maestro, Mazaod, Melle, Membre, Miranda, Moschato, Nahmias, Oef, Pappo, Pardo, Salama, Sarfatin, Tobi , Trigo, Trincha, Valenzin).