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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §22.2.5.pr-22.2.5.1

Price of Risk and Agreements on Conditional Funding

Passage 3214 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section explains the concept of the price of risk using examples of returns linked to unfulfilled conditions and conditional funding for fishermen or athletes, noting that informal agreements are also effective to increase these obligations.

[SCAEUOLA libro sexto responsorum. ] §22.2.5.prPericuli pretium est et si condicione quamuis poenali non exsistente recepturus sis quod dederis et insuper aliquid praeter pecuniam, si modo in aleae speciem non cadat: ueluti ea, ex quibus condictiones nasci solent, ut 'si non manumittas', 'si non illud facias', 'si non conualuero' et cetera.
[SCAEUOLA, in the sixth book of Responses.] It is also a price of risk if, by a condition—even if it is penal—not being fulfilled, you are to receive back what you gave and, in addition, something besides the money, provided only that it does not fall under the character of a wager: as, for example, those from which claims for return (condictiones) are accustomed to arise, such as "if you do not manumit," "if you do not do that," "if I do not recover," and so forth.
nec dubitabis, si piscatori erogaturo in apparatum plurimum pecuniae dederim, ut, si cepisset, redderet, et athletae, unde se exhiberet exerceretque, ut, si uicisset, redderet.
Nor will you doubt if I should give a large amount of money to a fisherman who is about to spend it on equipment, on the condition that, if he catches fish, he should return it, or to an athlete, from which he may support and train himself, on the condition that, if he wins, he should return it.
§22.2.5.1In his autem omnibus et pactum sine stipulatione ad augendam obligationem prodest.
In all these cases, however, an agreement without a stipulation is also effective to increase the obligation.

Notes

  1. §22.2.5.prcondicione quamuis poenali non exsistente — An ablative absolute construction (condicione non exsistente) in which the concessive adverb quamuis ("although," "however") modifies the adjective poenali. It is interpreted as "by a condition—even if it is penal—not being fulfilled."
  2. §22.2.5.prnec dubitabis, si piscatori... — The conditional clause starting with si, introduced by nec dubitabis ("nor will you doubt"), implies that the main assertion "Periculi pretium est" (it is a price of risk) also applies to the specific examples of the fisherman and the athlete. The phrase "ut, si cepisset, redderet" embeds a conditional si-clause within a purpose or result ut-clause, indicating a conditional return of "on the condition that, if he catches, he should return."

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §22.2.5.pr-22.2.5.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:22.2.5.pr-22.2.5.1

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