[3] Memmius first appears in the historical record as a Tribune of the Plebs for 66 BC, in which role he prosecuted Marcus Lucullus for his actions as quaestor under the rule of Sulla.
[12] In 52 BC, now without a powerful ally, he was prosecuted along with others under the lex Pompeia de ambitu for taking and offering bribes during his consular election campaign.
[13][14] Since the same law offered amnesty to anybody who brought a successful prosecution under it, Memmius then accused Metellus Scipio, Pompey's own father-in-law, of the same offence.
However, Pompey publicly interceded on Metellus Scipio's behalf, calling all of the jurors to himself and putting on mourning garb in the traditional solicitation of sympathy and support, which led Memmius to withdraw his charge and go into exile in Athens.
In the first half of 51 BC, while in Athens, Memmius bought an estate on which were the ruins of Epicurus' house, and secured authorisation from the Areopagus to tear them down and build on the site.
It was certainly known and referenced by Pliny the Younger at the end of the 1st century AD, who cites Memmius' name in defence of his own composition of poetry considered to be vulgar.
[29] In the early 2nd century AD, Aulus Gellius wrote that 'rather many Greeks' considered Memmius' work to be durus ('hard', in the sense of 'unrefined'), in unfavourable contrast to that of Catullus and Cinna.
[30] According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, Cicero praised him as possessing considerable oratorical abilities, but judged that his contempt for Latin letters and preference for Greek models impaired his efficiency as an advocate.
[41] This made Memmius the uncle of the younger Gaius Scribonius Curio, who would be killed in 49 BC fighting under Julius Caesar.