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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §23.5.13.pr-23.5.13.4

Scope of Dotal Land, Alienation Ban, and Bequest to Heirs

Passage 3504 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Ulpian defines the scope of a dotal estate (including urban, rustic, and partial estates) and its restriction on alienation upon the husband's acquisition, while addressing the extension of relief to the wife's heirs and Scaevola's ruling on the validity of a bequest of such estate when the wife is appointed heir.

[ULPIANUS libro quinto de adulteriis. ] §23.5.13.prDotale praedium accipere debemus tam urbanum quam rusticum: ad omne enim aedificium lex Iulia pertinebit.
[ULPIAN, On Adulteries, Book V.] We must understand a dotal estate as being both urban and rustic; for the Lex Julia will apply to every building.
§23.5.13.1Praedii appellatione etiam pars continetur.
The term "estate" also includes a part of it.
proinde siue totum praedium in dotem sit datum siue pars praedii, alienari non poterit: et hoc iure utimur.
Therefore, whether the whole estate or only a part of it has been given as dowry, it cannot be alienated; and we follow this rule.
§23.5.13.2Dotale praedium sic accipimus, cum dominium so marito quaesitum est, ut tunc demum alienatio prohibeatur.
We understand "dotal estate" in this sense: when ownership has been acquired by the husband, so that only then is alienation prohibited.
§23.5.13.3Heredi quoque mulieris idem auxilium praestabitur, quod mulieri praestabatur.
The same relief which was afforded to the woman shall also be granted to her heir.
§23.5.13.4Si uxore herede instituta fundus dotalis fuerit legatus, si quidem deductis legatis mulier quantitatem dotis in hereditatem habitura est, ualet legatum, si minus, an non ualeat, quaeritur.
If, where the wife has been appointed heir, a dotal estate has been bequeathed, if indeed, after deducting the legacies, the woman is to have the amount of her dowry in the inheritance, the legacy is valid; if less, the question is raised whether it is not valid.
Scaeuola, et si non totus, sed uel aliqua pars ex eo uindicari possit, si modo aliqua pars ad dotem supplendam desit, id dumtaxat ex eo remanere apud mulierem ait, quod quantitati dotis deest.
Scaeuola says that, even if not the whole but some part of it can be claimed, provided that some part is lacking to make up the dowry, only so much of it remains with the woman as is lacking to the amount of the dowry.

Notes

  1. §23.5.13.2dominium so marito quaesitum est — The manuscript reading `so` is commonly emended to the demonstrative pronoun `eo`, yielding `dominium eo marito quaesitum est` ("when ownership has been acquired by that husband"). The ablative `marito` functions as the agent or instrument of acquisition.
  2. §23.5.13.4Scaeuola, et si non totus, sed uel aliqua pars ex eo uindicari possit, si modo aliqua pars ad dotem supplendam desit, id dumtaxat ex eo remanere apud mulierem ait, quod quantitati dotis deest. — The main clause `Scaeuola ... ait` introduces an accusative and infinitive construction with the subject accusative `id` and the infinitive `remanere`. The subject `id` is modified by the relative clause `quod ... deest` at the end, while a concessive clause (`et si ... possit`) and a conditional clause (`si modo ... desit`) are nested within, forming a highly complex sentence structure.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §23.5.13.pr-23.5.13.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:23.5.13.pr-23.5.13.4

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