Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §21.2.48.pr

Limit of Double Value Liability upon Successive Evictions

Passage 3129 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

The text discusses that when land purchased with a warranty of being free from encumbrances suffers first the eviction of servitudes and then the eviction of the entire property, the seller's liability is capped at double the purchase price, meaning only the remaining balance should be paid.

[NERATIUS libro sexto membranarum. ] §21.2.48.prCum fundus 'uti optimus maximusque est' emptus est et alicuius seruitutis euictae nomine aliquid emptor a uenditore consecutus est, deinde totus fundus euincitur, ob eam euictionem id praestari debet quod ex duplo reliquum est: nam si aliud obseruabimus, seruitutibus aliquibus et mox proprietate euicta amplius duplo emptor quam quanti emit consequeretur.
[NERATIUS, Book VI of Parchments.] When land is bought "in its best and greatest condition," and the buyer has obtained something from the seller on account of the eviction of some servitude, and then the entire land is evicted, there must be paid on account of that eviction what remains of the double value; for if we observe otherwise, the buyer, some servitudes and soon the ownership being evicted, would obtain more than double the amount for which he bought it.

Notes

  1. §21.2.48.pruti optimus maximusque est — A standard formula in sales contracts guaranteeing that the land is free from any encumbrances (such as servitudes). Grammatically, it functions like a predicative apposition to 'fundus'.
  2. §21.2.48.prseruitutibus aliquibus et mox proprietate euicta — An ablative absolute construction where the perfect participle 'euicta' (feminine singular) agrees grammatically with the nearest noun 'proprietate' (feminine singular), but semantically also applies to 'seruitutibus' (feminine plural).
  3. §21.2.48.prquanti — A genitive of price (or value) indicating the purchase price under the verb 'emit'. It functions relatively to mean 'at the price for which he bought it.'

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §21.2.48.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:21.2.48.pr

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