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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §31.0.32.pr-31.0.32.6

Timing of Unconditional Legacies and Rules of Interpretation

Passage 4758 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Rules by Modestinus on the timing of performing unconditional legacies, reclaiming property before conditions are met, interpreting legacy clauses (concerning land equipment and granaries), and the scope of family in trusts.

[IDEM libro nono regularum. ] §31.0.32.prOmnia, quae testamentis sine die uel condicione adscribuntur, ex die aditae hereditatis praestentur.
[THE SAME, from the Ninth Book of Rules.] All things which are written in testaments without a day or a condition should be performed from the day the inheritance is entered.
§31.0.32.1Fundum ante condicionem conpletam ab herede non traditum, sed a legatario detentum heres uindicare cum fructibus poterit.
A tract of land which has not been delivered by the heir before the fulfillment of the condition, but has been detained by the legatee, can be claimed by the heir together with its fruits.
§31.0.32.2Cum ita legatur: illi hoc amplius fundum illum cum omnibus rebus, quae in eodem fundo 'erunt', mancipia quoque continentur.
When it is bequeathed in this way: "to him, in addition to this, that tract of land with all things which shall be on the same land," slaves also are included.
§31.0.32.3Cum ita legatur: 'quidquid in horreo meo erit et is cui legatum est ex rebus non legatis ignorante eo ampliandi legati sui gratia in horreum intulerit, quod illatum est non uidetur esse legatum.
When it is bequeathed in this way: "whatever shall be in my granary," and he to whom the legacy was left has, without his (the testator's) knowledge, brought in other things from among those not bequeathed, for the sake of increasing his own legacy, what was brought in is not considered to be bequeathed.
§31.0.32.4Quod a legatario petitum erat, ut alii restitueret, si legatarius decedat, heres quoque eius id quod legatum est praestare debebit.
What had been requested of a legatee to restore to another, if the legatee dies, his heir also will be obliged to perform that which was bequeathed.
§31.0.32.5Species nominatim legatae si non repperiantur nec dolo heredis deesse probentur, peti ex eodem testamento non possunt.
If specific things bequeathed by name are not found and are not proved to be missing through the fraud of the heir, they cannot be claimed under the same testament.
§31.0.32.6In fideicommisso quod familiae relinquitur hi ad petitionem eius admitti possunt, qui nominati sunt, aut post omnes eos exstinctos qui ex nomine defuncti fuerint eo tempore, quo testator moreretur, et qui ex his primo gradu procreati sint, nisi specialiter defunctus ad ulteriores uoluntatem suam extenderit.
In a trust left to a family, those who are named can be admitted to its petition, or, after all of them are deceased, those who were of the name of the deceased at the time when the testator died, and those procreated from them in the first degree, unless the deceased has specifically extended his will to more remote descendants.

Notes

  1. 31.0.32.prex die aditae hereditatis — 'aditae' is the perfect passive participle of 'adire' (to enter/accept an inheritance), modifying 'hereditatis'. The entire phrase means "from the day the inheritance is entered," indicating that legacies without conditions or specific dates become due from the moment the inheritance is accepted.
  2. 31.0.32.1ante condicionem conpletam — The preposition 'ante' governs the accusative noun with a perfect passive participle ('condicionem conpletam'). This represents a nominal event: "before the completion (fulfillment) of the condition."
  3. 31.0.32.3ignorante eo — An ablative absolute clause consisting of the present participle 'ignorante' and the pronoun 'eo'. 'eo' refers to the testator. It describes a situation where the legatee brought items into the granary during the testator's lifetime without the testator's knowledge to artificially increase the legacy.
  4. 31.0.32.6qui ex nomine defuncti fuerint — Here, 'nomen' means "family name" or "clan name," and 'ex nomine defuncti' refers to being of the deceased's name or family. It designates those who belong to the family or lineage of the deceased.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §31.0.32.pr-31.0.32.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:31.0.32.pr-31.0.32.6

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