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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §26.6.2.pr-26.6.2.6

Parties Bound to Request Tutors and Their Liabilities

Passage 3833 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Explains who has the right and obligation to request tutors or curators for minors, quoting classical jurists' opinions and imperial letters/constitutions regarding the liabilities and penalties for mothers, freedmen, and other parties.

[IDEM libro primo excusationum. ] §26.6.2.prἘὰν οἱ ἀφήλικες μὴ ἔχωσι τοὺς ἐκ τῶν νόμων κηδεμόνας, ἐὰν μὲν ἐπιτρόπων δέωνται διὰ τὴν ἡλικίαν, δύνανται αἰτῆσαι αὐτοῖς ἐπιτρόπους κατασταθῆναι οἵ τε συγγενεῖς καὶ οἱ κατ' ἐπιγαμίαν οἰκεῖοι γονέων ἀρρένων τε καὶ θηλειῶν.
[THE SAME, from the first book on Excuses.] minors do not have guardians according to the law, and if they need tutors because of their age, their relatives and the relatives by marriage of their parents, both paternal and maternal, can request that tutors be appointed for them.
δὑνανται καὶ φίλοι τῶν γονέων καὶ τροφεῖς αὐτῶν τῶν παίδων τοῦτο αἰτῆσαι. §26.6.2.1Οἱ μὲν οὖν ἄλλοι ἐκ προαιρέσεως αἰτοῦσιν ἐπιτρόπους· εἰσὶ δὲ τινες οἷς ἐπάναγκἐσ ἐστιν αἰτεῖν ἐπιτρόπους, οἷον μήτηρ καὶ ἀπελεύθεροι· ἐκ τούτων γὰρ αἱ μὲν ζημιοῦνται, οἱ δὲ καὶ κολάζονται, ἐὰν μὴ αἰτήσωσι τοὺς ἐκ τῶν νόμων κηδεμόνας.
The friends of the parents and the educators of the children themselves can also request this., while others request tutors of their own free will, there are some for whom it is compulsory to request tutors, such as a mother and freedmen; for among these, the former suffer a disadvantage, and the latter are even punished, if they do not request guardians according to the law.
Ἢ μὲν γὰρ μήτηρ ἐξελαύνεται τῆς τοῦ παιδὸς νομίμου κληρονομίας, ὡς οὖσα ἀναξία λαβεῖν κλῆρον νόμιμον, μὴ φροντίσασα αὐτῷ κατασταθῆναι ἐπίτροπον.
For the mother is excluded from the lawful inheritance of her child, as being unworthy to receive a lawful inheritance, because she did not take care that a tutor was appointed for him.
καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐὰν μὴ αἰτήσῃ, ἀλλὰ καὶ, ὃν ἂν αἰτήσῃ, ὁσίασ χάριν αἰτήσῃ τὸν ἀφεθῆναι δυνάμενον, εἶτα ἀφεθέντος αὐτοῦ ἢ καὶ ἀποβληθέντος ἄλλον μὴ αἰτήσῃ πάλιν, ἢ ἐξεπίτηδεσ κακοῦσ αἰτήσῃ.
And this applies not only if she does not request one, but also if, whomsoever she requests, she requests merely for form's sake someone who can be excused, and then, after he has been excused or even rejected, she does not request another in turn, or if she intentionally requests someone who is bad.
ἀπελεύθεροι δὲ ἐκ τούτων τῶν αἰτίων κατηγορηθέντες ἐπὶ τοῦ ἡγουμένου κολάζονται ἐπιστρέφως, ἐὰν φαίνωνται ἢ δι' ἀμέλειαν ἢ διὰ κακίαν μὴ ὴτηκοτες. §26.6.2.2Τὰ δὲ περὶ τῆς μητρὸς προειρημένα δηλοῦται ἐν ἐπιστολῇ Σεβήρου, ἧς τὰ ῥήματα ὑποτέτακται.
On the other hand, if freedmen are accused before the governor on these grounds, they are severely punished if they are shown to have failed to make the request either through negligence or through malice. things mentioned above concerning the mother are made clear in a letter of Severus, the words of which are subjoined below.
'Diuus Seuerus Cuspio Rufino.
"The Divine Severus to Cuspius Rufinus.
Omnem me rationem adhibere subueniendis pupillis, cum ad curam publicam pertineat, liquere omnibus uolo.
I wish it to be clear to everyone that I apply every consideration to helping wards, since it pertains to public concern.
et ideo quae mater uel non petierit tutores idoneos filiis suis uel prioribus excusatis reiectisue non confestim aliorum nomina dederit, ius non habeat uindicandorum sibi bonorum intestatorum filiorum'. §26.6.2.3Ἐὰν μέντοι τις ἢ δανειστὴς ἢ λεγατάριος ἢ ἄλλην ἀναγκαίαν ἔχῃ πρὸς τὸν ὀρφανὸν σύστασιν, αὐτὸς μὲν οὐκ αἰτήσει ἐπίτροπον τῷ ὀρφανῷ, ἀλλὰ τοὺς αἰτεῖν δυναμένους ἀξιώσει αἰτῆσαι, ἢ ἐὰν οὗτοι ἀποκνήσωσι, τότε προσελθὼν τῷ ἡγουμένῳ αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἐρεῖ, ἵνα κατασταθέντος ἐπιτρόπου νομίμου ἢ πρὸς τὸν ὀρφανὸν γένηται σύστασις. §26.6.2.4Ταῦτα μὲν περὶ ἐπιτρόπων· κουράτορασ δὲ ἑαυτοῖς αἰτήσουσιν οἱ ἀφήλικες, ἐὰν μὲν παρῶσι, δι' ἑαυτῶν· ἐὰν δὲ ἀποδημῇ τις αὐτῶν, αἰτήσει διὰ φροντιστοῦ. §26.6.2.5Εἱ δὲ ἄλλοσ αἰτῆσαι κουράτορα δύναται τῷ ἀφήλικι, ἐζητήθη.
And therefore, any mother who has either not petitioned for suitable tutors for her sons, or, when the former ones were excused or rejected, did not immediately submit the names of others, shall not have the right to claim for herself the property of her intestate sons.", if anyone, whether a creditor, a legatee, or one who has another necessary relation with the orphan, cannot himself request a tutor for the orphan, but shall demand of those who can request to do so, or, if they hesitate, he shall then approach the governor and state this very fact, so that after a lawful tutor has been appointed, the relation with the orphan may be established. things indeed concern tutors; but minors shall request curators for themselves, if they are present, by themselves, and if any of them is away, he shall request through an agent. another person can request a curator for a minor was questioned.
Καὶ Οὐλπιανὸς ὁ κράτιστος οὕτως γράφει, ὡς δέον ἄλλον αὐτῷ μὴ αἰτεῖν, ἀλλὰ αὐτὸν ἑαυτῷ, et apud Paulum libro nono responsorum ita relatum est curatorem ignorante nec mandante pupilla non recte ei a tutore petitum uideri periculumque eorum, quae curator non iure datus gessit, non sine ratione eum qui petit cogendum agnoscere.
And the most excellent Ulpian writes that another should not request one for him, but he himself for himself. And in Paul, in the ninth book of Answers, it is reported in this way: that a curator is not deemed to have been rightly requested by a tutor for a female ward who was ignorant of it and had not authorized it, and that it is not without reason that the one who petitioned should be compelled to assume the risk of those things which the curator, given unlawfully, has done.
et alia parte eiusdem libri ita respondit, si matris iudicium princeps secutus curatores filiae eius dedit, periculum administrationis eorum eam respicere debere. §26.6.2.6Οἱ ὁπωσοῦν ἀφεθέντες δι' excusationos τῆς ἐπιτροπῆς ἀνάγκην οὐκ ἔχουσιν αἰτεῖν τοῖς ὀρφανοῖς ἐπίτροπον, ὡς φησι Σεβήρου καὶ Ἀντωνίνου διάταξις.
And in another part of the same book, he answered that if the prince, following the mother's judgment, gave curators to her daughter, she ought to bear the risk of their administration. who have been excused in any way from the necessity of tutorship have no obligation to request a tutor for orphans, as a constitution of Severus and Antoninus states.

Notes

  1. §26.6.2.prδύνανται αἰτῆσαι αὐτοῖς ἐπιτρόπους κατασταθῆναι οἵ τε συγγενεῖς — The main verb is "δύνανται," with the complementary infinitive "αἰτῆσαι." The object of "αἰτῆσαι" is the accusative with infinitive clause "αὐτοῖς ἐπιτρόπους κατασταθῆναι" (that tutors be appointed for them). The subject of the sentence is the postposed "οἵ τε συγγενεῖς" (both the relatives) and the following noun phrases.
  2. §26.6.2.1ὁσίασ χάριν — An idiomatic expression meaning "for form's sake" or "pro forma." It refers to the fraudulent act of requesting someone who is easily excusable just to appear to comply with the legal obligation, without any genuine intent to secure a functioning tutor.
  3. §26.6.2.5curatorem ignorante nec mandante pupilla non recte ei a tutore petitum uideri — This is an indirect speech construction (accusative with infinitive), where the phrase "curatorem ... non recte ... petitum [esse]" serves as the subject accusative of the main infinitive "uideri" (to seem/be deemed). "ignorante nec mandante pupilla" is an ablative absolute clause with present participles, indicating the condition "with the female ward being ignorant and not having authorized it."

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §26.6.2.pr-26.6.2.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:26.6.2.pr-26.6.2.6

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