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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §2.8.3.pr

Surety Liability in Actions for Multiple Damages

Passage 305 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section explains that the amount of liability for which a surety is held is equal to the value of the matter in dispute, even when the principal action is for double, triple, or quadruple the amount.

[GAIUS libro primo ad edictum prouinciale. ] §2.8.3.prSiue in duplum est actio siue tripli aut quadrupli, tanti eundem fideiussorem omnimodo teneri dicimus, quia tanti res esse intellegitur.
[GAIUS, in the first book on the Provincial Edict.] Whether the action is for double, or triple, or quadruple the amount, we say that the same surety is liable in any case for just so much, because the matter is understood to be worth just so much.

Notes

  1. 2.8.3.prin duplum est actio siue tripli aut quadrupli — Within the same disjunctive conditional construction (siue ... siue), different grammatical structures are coordinated: `in duplum` (preposition with accusative) for double, and `tripli` and `quadrupli` (genitives of value) for triple and quadruple. They function equivalently in specifying the multiplier of the claim in the action.
  2. 2.8.3.prtanti — A genitive of value. In the main clause (`tanti... teneri`), it indicates the scope of liability ("to be held liable for just so much"), whereas in the causal clause (`tanti res esse`), it denotes the substantial evaluation ("the matter is understood to be worth just so much").

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §2.8.3.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:2.8.3.pr

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