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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §32.0.14.pr-32.0.14.2

Conditional Legacies on Non-Remarriage and Property Valuation

Passage 4835 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

The text discusses the obligation to restore a legacy conditioned on not remarrying, the liability of an heir freed from an oath, and the duty to pay a fair value when a legacy to purchase another's property cannot be fulfilled.

[GAIUS libro primo fideicommissorum. ] §32.0.14.prNon dubium est, quin, si uxori legatum sit 'si non nupserit' idque alii restituere rogata sit, cogenda est, si nupserit, restituere.
[GAIUS from the first book on Trusts.] There is no doubt that, if a legacy has been left to a wife "if she does not remarry," and she has been requested to restore it to another, she must be compelled to restore it if she does remarry.
§32.0.14.1Heres quoque, cui iurisiurandi condicio remittitur, legatum et fideicommissum debet.
An heir also, to whom the condition of taking an oath is remitted, owes the legacy and trust.
§32.0.14.2Sed si cui legatum relictum est, ut alienam rem redimat uel praestet, si redimere non possit, quod dominus non uendat uel immodico pretio uendat, iustam aestimationem inferat.
But if a legacy has been left to someone on the condition that he redeem or provide a thing belonging to another, if he cannot redeem it because the owner will not sell it or will sell it only at an excessive price, he must pay its fair value.

Notes

  1. §32.0.14.prcogenda est — Although a subjunctive (cogenda sit) is expected inside the noun clause introduced by non dubium est, quin, the indicative cogenda est is used here. This either emphasizes the certainty of the obligation or reflects a later loosening of subjunctive usage in such clauses.
  2. §32.0.14.2quod dominus non uendat — The subjunctive uendat is used after the causal conjunction quod to present the reason not as an absolute objective fact, but as a subjective explanation or hypothetical circumstance ('in cases where the owner refuses to sell').
  3. §32.0.14.2iustam aestimationem inferat — inferat is an independent present subjunctive expressing obligation or command (hortatory/jussive), serving as the main verb for the conditional sentence starting with si cui legatum relictum est...

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §32.0.14.pr-32.0.14.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:32.0.14.pr-32.0.14.2

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