Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §28.7.15.pr

Conditions Contrary to Morality as Impossible Acts

Passage 4335 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Papinian states that if a son under paternal power is appointed heir under a condition disapproved by the senate or the emperor, he may contest the testament as if the condition were impossible for him to fulfill, establishing the famous principle that acts contrary to morals and duty must be regarded as impossible for us to perform.

[PAPINIANUS libro sexto decimo quaestionum. ] §28.7.15.prFilius, qui fuit in potestate, sub condicione scriptus heres, quam senatus aut princeps improbant, testamentum infirmet patris, ac si condicio non esset in eius potestate: nam quae facta laedunt pietatem existimationem uerecundiam nostram et, ut generaliter dixerim, contra bonos mores fiunt, nec facere nos posse credendum est.
[PAPINIANUS, in the sixteenth book of Questions.] A son, who was under paternal power, when appointed heir under a condition which the senate or the emperor disapprove, may invalidate the testament of his father, just as if the condition were not within his power; for we must believe that we cannot perform those acts which offend our sense of duty, reputation, and modesty, and, to speak generally, are contrary to good morals.

Notes

  1. §28.7.15.prinfirmet — Third-person singular present subjunctive. It expresses the legal possibility or permission for the heir, who is subjected to an improper condition, to challenge and invalidate the testament (e.g., through a querela inofficiosi testamenti).
  2. §28.7.15.prquae facta — The relative pronoun quae (neuter plural) modifies the noun facta (acts), forming a relative clause that contains its own antecedent. This entire clause functions syntactically as the object of the infinitive facere at the end of the sentence.
  3. §28.7.15.prnec facere nos posse credendum est — credendum est is an impersonal gerundive construction expressing obligation ('it must be believed'). It takes an accusative-and-infinitive clause with nos as the subject accusative and posse as the infinitive. The negative nec negates the entire clause, asserting that 'we must believe we are unable' to perform such acts.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §28.7.15.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:28.7.15.pr

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