Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §26.5.26.pr

Invalid Appointment of a Tutor to a Female Past Puberty

Passage 3828 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Scaevola's opinion that if a tutor is appointed to a female who has already passed her twelfth year as if she were a minor, the appointee is not required to excuse himself and is not liable for failing to administer.

[SCAEUOLA libro secundo responsorum. ] §26.5.26.prSeiae egressae annos duodecim decreto praetoris ex inquisitione datus est tutor quasi minori: quaero an excusare se deberet.
[SCAEVOLA, from the second book of Opinions.] To Seia, who had passed her twelfth year, a tutor was appointed by a decree of the praetor after an inquiry, as if to a minor. I ask whether he ought to have excused himself.
respondi secundum ea quae proponerentur neque excusationem necessariam esse neque obligari quod non gereret.
I answered that, according to the facts proposed, neither was an excuse necessary, nor was he liable because he did not administer.

Notes

  1. §26.5.26.pregressae — Perfect participle of the deponent verb egredior, carrying an active meaning. It takes the accusative annos duodecim as its direct object, meaning "having passed twelve years," and is in the dative to agree with Seiae.
  2. §26.5.26.prquasi minori — Dative of the comparative adjective minor (younger, minor), agreeing with Seiae. Since a female reaches puberty at twelve, she is no longer subject to the tutelage of minors (tutela impuberis). The phrase indicates that the tutor was improperly appointed "as if to a minor (under twelve)."
  3. §26.5.26.probligari quod non gereret — obligari is a passive infinitive forming part of the accusative-with-infinitive construction dependent on respondi. The subjunctive gereret in the quod clause is used either because it is a subordinate clause in indirect speech, or to express the alleged reason ("on the ground that he did not administer").

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §26.5.26.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:26.5.26.pr

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.