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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §31.0.47.pr

Discrepancy in Legacy Amounts Between Will Duplicates

Passage 4774 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

In a case where two duplicates of a will show different legacy amounts (one hundred and fifty aurei) for the same legatee, Proculus answers that to spare the heir, only the smaller amount of fifty aurei is due.

[IDEM libro sexto epistularum. ] §31.0.47.prSempronius Proculus Nepoti suo salutem.
[THE SAME in the sixth book of Epistles.] Sempronius Proculus to his Nepos, greeting.
Binae tabulae testamenti eodem tempore exemplarii causa scriptae (ut uolgo fieri solet) eiusdem patris familias proferuntur: in alteris centum, in alteris quinquaginta aurei legati sunt Titio: quaeris, utrum et quinquaginta aureos an centum dumtaxat habiturus sit.
Two copies of the will of the same head of a household, written at the same time for the purpose of a duplicate (as is commonly done), are produced: in one, a hundred, in the other, fifty aurei are bequeathed to Titius. You ask whether he is to have fifty aurei as well, or only a hundred.
Proculus respondit: in hoc casu magis heredi parcendum est ideoque utrumque legatum nullo modo debetur, sed tantummodo quinquaginta aurei.
Proculus replied: In this case, the heir must be spared more, and therefore both legacies are by no means due, but only fifty aurei.

Notes

  1. 31.0.47.prutrum et quinquaginta — The conjunction `utrum... an...` introduces an indirect question ("whether... or..."). The word `et` here is used in an additive sense ("also, as well, in addition to"), indicating a question of whether he is to have fifty aurei as well (i.e., in addition to the hundred mentioned in the other copy), or only a hundred.
  2. 31.0.47.prheredi parcendum est — An impersonal passive periphrastic construction using the gerundive of the intransitive verb `parco` (which governs the dative, meaning "to spare"). The person to be spared is expressed by the dative `heredi` ("the heir must be spared more"). The dative of agent is omitted.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §31.0.47.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:31.0.47.pr

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