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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §1.3.37.pr

Custom as the Best Interpreter of the Laws

Passage 56 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Paulus states that when a question arises about the interpretation of a law, one must first examine what law the state has previously used in such cases, as custom is the best interpreter of laws.

[IDEM libro I quaestionum. ] §1.3.37.prSi de interpretatione legis quaeratur, in primis inspiciendum est, quo iure ciuitas retro in eiusmodi casibus usa fuisset: optima enim est legum interpres consuetudo.
[THE SAME, Questions, book 1] If a question arises regarding the interpretation of a law, first of all it must be examined what law the state had previously used in such cases; for custom is the best interpreter of laws.

Notes

  1. §1.3.37.prquo iure ... usa fuisset — The verb usa fuisset is the subjunctive pluperfect of the deponent verb utor, which governs the ablative case (quo iure). The pluperfect tense is used in the indirect question to denote an action prior to the main gerundive clause inspiciendum est, referring to what the state had retroactively practiced in the past.
  2. §1.3.37.prlegum interpres — The genitive plural legum acts as an objective genitive in relation to the noun interpres (interpreter), meaning 'the interpreter of laws.'

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §1.3.37.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:1.3.37.pr

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