Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §29.2.85.pr

Right to Abstain after Acceptance under Duress

Passage 4488 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

States that if someone accepts an inheritance under duress, they will be granted the power to abstain from the inheritance, as they became an heir against their will.

[IDEM libro trigesimo quaestionum. ] §29.2.85.prSi metus causa adeat aliquis hereditatem, fiet ut, quia inuitus heres existat, detur abstinendi facultas.
[THE SAME, from the thirtieth book of Questions.] If anyone should accept an inheritance because of fear, it will be the case that, since he becomes an heir against his will, the power of abstaining is granted to him.

Notes

  1. §29.2.85.prfiet ut... detur — The impersonal expression `fiet` (future active third-person singular of `fio`) is followed by the noun clause of result `ut ... detur` (subjunctive passive present third-person singular), meaning "it will come about that..." or "the result will be that...".
  2. §29.2.85.prinuitus — The adjective `inuitus` (unwilling) is used predicatively in agreement with the implied subject of `existat`, functioning adverbially to mean "against his will" or "unwillingly".
  3. §29.2.85.prabstinendi — The genitive gerund of the verb `abstineo` (to hold back, abstain), modifying the noun `facultas` to mean "the opportunity/power of abstaining." In Roman legal terminology, it refers to the heir's right to abstain from meddling with the inheritance, effectively refusing it.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §29.2.85.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:29.2.85.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.