Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §16.2.23.pr

Prohibition of Set-Off of Guardian's Personal Debt

Passage 2401 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Paulus rules that when a guardian claims a debt on behalf of their wards, the debtor cannot set off a personal debt owed to them by the guardian.

[PAULUS libro nono responsorum. ] §16.2.23.prId quod pupillorum nomine debetur si tutor petat, non posse compensationem obici eius pecuniae, quam ipse tutor suo nomine aduersario debet.
[PAULUS, Opinions, Book IX.] If a guardian demands that which is owed on account of his wards, a set-off cannot be opposed of that money which the guardian himself owes on his own account to the opponent.

Notes

  1. §16.2.23.prId quod pupillorum nomine debetur — Literally 'that which is owed in the name of the wards'. The passive 'debetur' indicates a debt owed by a third party to the wards (i.e., the wards' claim). The guardian (tutor) is demanding payment of this claim in their capacity as administrator.
  2. §16.2.23.prnon posse — The infinitive 'posse' in the main clause is due to the indirect speech construction (accusative with infinitive) typical in jurists' opinions, implying an omitted main verb such as 'responsum est' (it was replied).
  3. §16.2.23.preius pecuniae — Genitive case. It can be construed as modifying 'compensationem' (set-off [of that money]), or as an irregular usage dependent on 'obici', but contextually it designates the money that the tutor personally owes to the adversary, the set-off of which is being denied.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §16.2.23.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:16.2.23.pr

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.