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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §26.1.1.pr-26.1.1.3

Definition of Guardianship and Disqualifications of Guardians

Passage 3729 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This text explains the legal definition of guardianship (tutela), the etymology of the term guardian (tutor), and the grounds on which the inability to communicate (being mute or deaf) disqualifies someone from being appointed as a guardian.

[PAULUS libro trigesimo octauo ad edictum. ] §26.1.1.prTutela est, ut Seruius definit, uis ac potestas in capite libero ad tuendum eum, qui propter aetatem sua sponte se defendere nequit, iure ciuili data ac permissa.
[PAULUS, On the Edict, Book 38.] Guardianship is, as Servius defines it, a force and power over a free person, given and permitted by the civil law, for protecting one who, on account of their age, is unable to defend themselves of their own accord.
§26.1.1.1Tutores autem sunt qui eam uim ac potestatem habent, exque re ipsa nomen ceperunt: itaque appellantur tutores quasi tuitores atque defensores, sicut aeditui dicuntur qui aedes tuentur.
Moreover, guardians are those who have that force and power, and they received their name from the thing itself; therefore they are called guardians as if they were protectors and defenders, just as those who protect temples are called temple-keepers.
§26.1.1.2Mutus tutor dari non potest, quoniam auctoritatem praebere non potest.
A mute person cannot be appointed as a guardian, since they cannot give their authorization.
§26.1.1.3Surdum non posse dari tutorem plerique et Pomponius libro sexagesimo nono ad edictum probant, quia non tantum loqui, sed et audire tutor debet.
Most authorities, as well as Pomponius in his sixty-ninth book On the Edict, approve the view that a deaf person cannot be appointed as a guardian, because a guardian ought not only to speak but also to hear.

Notes

  1. §26.1.1.prin capite libero — The ablative noun `capite` (from `caput`, literally 'head') is used in a legal sense to denote 'personality,' 'status,' or 'individual.' Here, it refers to a person who has the status of a free person.
  2. §26.1.1.2auctoritatem — The term `auctoritas` (here in the accusative) refers to the specific legal concept of 'authorization' or 'consent' given by a guardian to make the ward's transactions legally binding. Since this required an oral declaration, a mute person (`mutus`) could not perform it.
  3. §26.1.1.3Surdum non posse dari tutorem — An accusative with infinitive clause functioning as the direct object of the main verb `probant` (they approve/agree). `Surdum` is the subject of the infinitive clause, and `posse dari` (to be able to be given/appointed) is the passive infinitive phrase.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §26.1.1.pr-26.1.1.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:26.1.1.pr-26.1.1.3

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