- Source
- Digesta Iustiniani Augusti. Mommsen, Theodor & Krueger, Paul, editors. Berlin: Weidmann, 1870.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:2.10.3.pr-2.10.3.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-28
Julian discusses the scope of the action on the case based on the plaintiff's interest against those who maliciously obstruct a court appearance, clarifying the rules for insolvent actors, mutual malice, and cases involving sureties.
[IULIANUS libro secundo digestorum.]
[JULIANUS, in the second book of the Digests.]
Ex hoc edicto aduersus eum, qui dolo fecit, quo minus quis in iudicium uocatus sistat, in factum actio competit quanti actoris interfuit eum sisti.1 in quo iudicio deducitur si quid amiserit actor ob eam rem ueluti si reus tempore2 dominium rei interim sibi adquirat aut actione liberatus fuerit.
By this Edict, against him who has acted with malice so that someone summoned to court does not appear, an action on the case lies for the amount of the plaintiff’s interest in his appearing. In which action, there is brought into account whatever the plaintiff may have lost on that account, such as if the defendant should in the meantime acquire ownership of the property by lapse of time, or should have been released from the action.
Plane si is, qui dolo fecerit, quo minus in iudicio sistatur, soluendo non fuerit,3 aequum erit aduersus ipsum reum restitutoriam actionem competere, ne propter dolum alienum reus lucrum faciat et actor damno adficiatur.
Clearly, if he who has acted with malice so that [the defendant] is not produced in court is insolvent, it will be equitable for a restorative action to lie against the defendant himself, lest on account of another’s malice the defendant make a profit and the plaintiff suffer a loss.
Si et stipulator dolo Titii et promissor dolo Maeui impeditus fuerit, quo minus in iudicio sistatur: uterque aduersus eum, cuius dolo impeditus fuerit, actione in factum experietur.
If both the stipulator by the malice of Titius and the promisor by the malice of Maevius have been prevented from appearing in court, each will proceed by an action on the case against the person by whose malice he was prevented.
Si et stipulator dolo promissoris et promissor dolo stipulatoris impeditus fuerit quo minus ad iudicium ueniret: neutri eorum praetor succurrere debebit, ab utraque parte dolo compensando.
If both the stipulator by the malice of the promisor and the promisor by the malice of the stipulator have been prevented from coming to court, the praetor ought to assist neither of them, since the malice on both sides is set off against each other.
Si a fideiussore quinquaginta stipulatus fuero, si in iudicium reus non uenerit, petiturus a reo centum, et dolo malo Sempronii factum fuerit, ne in iudicium reus ueniat: centum a Sempronio consequar. tanti enim mea interfuisse uidetur, quia, si uenisset in iudicium, actio mihi centum aduersus reum uel aduersus heredem eius competebat,4 licet fideiussor minorem summam mihi promiserit.
If I have stipulated for fifty from a surety in case the debtor does not come to court, intending to claim one hundred from the debtor, and it has been brought about by the malice of Sempronius that the debtor does not come to court, I shall recover one hundred from Sempronius. For my interest is seen to have been for so much, because, if he had come to court, I was entitled to an action for one hundred against the debtor or his heir, although the surety had promised me a smaller sum.
- 2.10.3.prquanti actoris interfuit eum sisti
In this construction with the impersonal verb interfuit, actoris is the genitive of the person concerned, quanti is the genitive of value/price indicating the extent of interest, and the accusative-with-infinitive clause eum sisti ('his appearing') serves as the subject. It means 'the amount of the plaintiff's interest in his appearing.'
- 2.10.3.prtempore
tempore (ablative) here is not merely 'time' but a technical legal term referring to 'lapse of time' or 'usucapio' (usucaption/acquisition of ownership by long possession).
- 2.10.3.1soluendo non fuerit
soluendo is the dative of the gerundive, which, when used with esse (here in the future perfect fuerit), forms an idiomatic expression meaning 'to be solvent' (dative of purpose/fitness). With non, it means 'to be insolvent.'
- 2.10.3.4competebat
In the apodosis of the contrary-to-fact conditional sentence (following si uenisset), the indicative imperfect competebat is used instead of the subjunctive pluperfect. This is a common idiom in legal Latin to emphasize the objective, legal certainty of the existence of the action (actio) had the condition been met.