Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §27.5.2.pr

Sale by a Quasi-Tutor and Ward's Recovery of Property

Passage 4027 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Celsus discusses the legal effect of a sale of the ward's property by a person who managed affairs as a tutor without being one. Unless usucapion has occurred, the ward can recover the property regardless of whether security was provided.

[CELSUS libro uicesimo quinto digestorum. ] §27.5.2.prSi is, qui pro tutore negotia gerebat, cum tutor non esset, rem pupilli uendidit nec ea usucapta est, petet eam pupillus, quamquam ei cautum est: non enim eadem huius quae tutoris est rerum pupilli administratio.
If a person who was managing affairs as a tutor, although he was not a tutor, sold a thing belonging to the ward and it was not acquired by usucapion, the ward will claim it, even though security has been provided for him; for the administration of the ward’s property by this person is not the same as that of a tutor.

Notes

  1. §27.5.2.prquamquam ei cautum est — An impersonal passive construction of the verb `caueo` in the perfect tense (`cautum est`) with the dative `ei` referring to the ward (`pupillus`). It indicates that even if security or guarantee had been provided for the ward against future losses, the ward can still bring a proprietary action to recover his property.
  2. §27.5.2.prnon enim eadem huius quae tutoris est rerum pupilli administratio — An `idem... qui/quae/quod` construction showing comparison or correlation. The subject of the sentence is `rerum pupilli administratio` (the administration of the ward's property), with which two genitives are contrasted: `huius` (of this person, i.e., the quasi-tutor) and `tutoris` (of the tutor). The relative pronoun `quae` agrees with `administratio` as the subject of the subordinate clause `quae [administratio] tutoris est` (which is that of the tutor). This explains why the unauthorized administrator has no legal authority to dispose of the property, making the sale invalid.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §27.5.2.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:27.5.2.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.