Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §19.5.14.pr-19.5.14.3

Property Damage Cases and Granting of Actions on the Case

Passage 2901 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section discusses various cases of intentional or accidental damage to another's property (throwing cargo into the sea, stripping a slave who dies of cold, discarding a silver cup, and cattle consuming fallen acorns) where existing statutory or civil law actions are unavailable, thereby justifying the granting of an action on the case (actio in factum).

[IDEM libro quadragesimo primo ad Sabinum. ] §19.5.14.prQui seruandarum mercium suarum causa alienas merces in mare proiecit, nulla tenetur actione: sed si sine causa id fecisset, in factum, si dolo, de dolo tenetur.

[THE SAME AUTHOR in the forty-first book on Sabinus.] He who has thrown another's goods into the sea for the sake of saving his own goods is liable under no action; but if he did this without cause, he is liable under an action on the case, and if by malice, under an action for fraud.

§19.5.14.1Sed et si seruum quis alienum spoliauerit isque frigore mortuus sit, de uestimentis quidem furti agi poterit, de seruo uero in factum agendum criminali poena aduersus eum seruata.

But also, if someone has stripped another's slave and he has died of cold, indeed an action for theft can be brought regarding the clothes, but regarding the slave, an action on the case must be brought, while reserving the criminal penalty against him.

§19.5.14.2Sed et si calicem argenteum quis alienum in profundum abiecerit damni dandi causa, non lucri faciendi, Pomponius libro septimo decimo ad Sabinum scripsit neque furti neque damni iniuriae actionem esse, in factum tamen agendum.

But also, if someone has thrown another's silver cup into the deep for the sake of causing damage, not for the sake of making a profit, Pomponius wrote in the seventeenth book on Sabinus that there is neither an action for theft nor for wrongful damage, but nevertheless an action on the case must be brought.

§19.5.14.3Si glans ex arbore tua in meum fundum cadat eamque ego immisso pecore depascam, Aristo scribit non sibi occurrere legitimam actionem, qua experiri possim: nam neque ex lege duodecim tabularum de pastu pecoris (quia non in tuo pascitur) neque de pauperie neque de damni iniuriae agi posse: in factum itaque erit agendum.

If an acorn falls from your tree onto my land and I feed on it by letting in cattle, Aristo writes that no statutory action occurs to him by which I could sue; for neither can an action be brought under the Law of the Twelve Tables regarding the pasturing of cattle (because they are not pasturing on your land), nor regarding damage by an animal, nor regarding wrongful damage; therefore, an action on the case will have to be brought.

Notes

19.5.14.prnulla tenetur actione — The verb "tenetur" (passive of "tenere") is used in the legal sense of "to be held liable" or "to be bound." The noun "actione" is an ablative of instrument or cause, meaning "is bound by no action."
19.5.14.1criminali poena aduersus eum seruata — An ablative absolute construction using the perfect participle of "servare." It indicates that while a civil action on the case (actio in factum) is granted, the potential criminal prosecution or punishment ("poena criminalis") against the wrongdoer is not precluded but rather "reserved" or maintained for the future.
19.5.14.3legitimam actionem — Here, "legitima actio" (statutory or legal action) refers to a regular action based on the Law of the Twelve Tables or other specific statutes (lex). Aristo argues that since no action matching the strict requirements of established civil law is available in this specific case, one must resort to an "action on the case" (actio in factum) granted by the praetor based on equity.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §19.5.14.pr-19.5.14.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:19.5.14.pr-19.5.14.3

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.