Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §29.2.55.pr

Abstention by Necessary Heir and Coheir's Election

Passage 4458 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section rules that when a necessary heir abstains from an inheritance, the coheir is given the condition to accept or reject the whole, with specific adjustments if creditors agree to accept only that coheir's share.

[MARCIANUS libro secundo regularum. ] §29.2.55.prCum hereditate patris necessarius heres se abstineat, condicio coheredi siue suo siue extraneo defertur, ut aut totam adgnoscat aut a toto recedat, et ita se abstinere potest propter alium, qui per suam personam non poterat.
[MARCIANUS, in the second book of the Rules.] When a necessary heir abstains from his father's inheritance, the condition is offered to his coheir, whether a self-successor or an outsider, either to acknowledge the whole or to withdraw from the whole, and thus a person who could not do so in his own person can abstain because of someone else.
si tamen creditores dicant se contentos esse eius portione, quia non potest exonerari, nisi deferatur condicio, et alterius parte abstinere se creditores debent, ut eius actiones ei qui conuenitur dentur.
If, however, the creditors say that they are satisfied with his share—because he cannot be discharged unless the condition is offered—the creditors must also abstain from the other's share, so that his actions may be given to the person who is sued.

Notes

  1. §29.2.55.prqui per suam personam non poterat — The antecedent of the relative pronoun 'qui' refers to 'coheredi' (specifically 'suo', the coheir who is a self-successor). A self-successor, being a 'heres suus et necessarius', normally cannot abstain from the inheritance on his own initiative; however, through the intervention of the 'condicio' (to accept or withdraw from the whole) triggered by another's withdrawal, he is enabled to abstain 'because of someone else' (propter alium).
  2. §29.2.55.prquia non potest exonerari, nisi deferatur condicio — The subject of 'non potest' is the coheir from whom the creditors are satisfied with a single share. Since he cannot be discharged (exonerari) from the liabilities of the whole unless the condition (condicio) is offered, the creditors, if they are content with his share, must abstain from the other's share and allow his actions to be transferred to him.
  3. §29.2.55.preius actiones ei qui conuenitur dentur — The pronoun genitive 'eius' refers to the preceding 'alterius' (the other heir who abstains). It means that his ('eius') actions ('actiones') should be given ('dentur') to the person who is sued ('ei qui conuenitur'), i.e., the remaining coheir, so that the sued coheir is protected and can manage the rights deriving from the abstaining heir's share.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §29.2.55.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:29.2.55.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.