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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §28.1.4.pr

Validity of a Testament: Capacity and Proper Procedure

Passage 4094 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Gaius explains that to determine the validity of a testament, one must first verify whether the testator possessed the capacity to make it, and second, whether the testament was made in accordance with the rules of the civil law.

[GAIUS libro secundo institutionum. ] §28.1.4.prSi quaeramus, an ualeat testamentum, in primis animaduertere debemus, an is qui fecerit testamentum habuerit testamenti factionem, deinde, si habuerit, requiremus, an secundum regulas iuris ciuilis testatus sit.
[GAIUS, in the second book of the Institutes.] If we inquire whether a testament is valid, we must first of all observe whether the person who made the testament had the capacity to make a testament; next, if he had it, we shall inquire whether he made his testament according to the rules of the civil law.

Notes

  1. §28.1.4.prSi quaeramus — The conditional clause with the present subjunctive `quaeramus` is combined with the indicative present apodosis `debemus`, representing a general hypothesis or assumption.
  2. §28.1.4.prhabuerit — This is a perfect subjunctive in the indirect question `an ... habuerit`, indicating anteriority relative to the main verb `debemus` (present), meaning that the person had the capacity at the time of making the testament. The verb `fecerit` in the relative clause similarly denotes anteriority.
  3. §28.1.4.prrequiremus — The first person plural future active indicative of `requirere`. Following the duty expressed by `debemus` in the first half, it represents the next logical step in the future: "we shall then inquire."

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §28.1.4.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:28.1.4.pr

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