Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §31.0.52.pr

Prohibition of Status Inquiry Before Devolution

Passage 4779 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

It states the principle that no inquiry should be made into the legal status or qualification of any person before the inheritance or legacy actually devolves upon them.

[TERENTIUS CLEMENS libro tertio ad legem Iuliam et Papiam. ] §31.0.52.prNon oportet prius de condicione cuiusquam quaeri, quam hereditas legatumue ad eum pertineat.

[TERENTIUS CLEMENS, in the third book on the Lex Julia et Papia.] It is not proper that inquiry should be made into the status of anyone before the inheritance or legacy belongs to him.

Notes

31.0.52.prprius ... quam — The elements prius and quam are separated to function as a single temporal conjunction meaning "before". The subjunctive pertineat in the subordinate clause is used because it expresses anticipation or a prospective condition.
31.0.52.prquaeri — A passive infinitive functioning as the subject of the impersonal verb oportet. It is used in an impersonal passive sense ("that inquiry be made") and is modified by the prepositional phrase de condicione cuiusquam.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §31.0.52.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:31.0.52.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.