Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §32.0.69.pr-32.0.69.1

Interpretation of Wills and the Meaning of Young Men

Passage 4893 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This text outlines the principle that one should adhere to the literal meaning of words in a will unless the testator's contrary intention is clear, and that interpretation should rely on judicial discretion rather than rigid definitions, using the age range of 'young men' as a concrete example.

[MARCELLUS libro singulari responsorum. ] §32.0.69.prNon aliter a significatione uerborum recedi oportet, quam cum manifestum est aliud sensisse testatorem.
[MARCELLUS, from his single book of Opinions.] One should not depart from the signification of words, unless it is manifest that the testator intended something else.
§32.0.69.1Titius codicillis suis ita cauit: 'Publio Maeuio omnes iuuenes, quos in ministerio habeo, dari uolo': quaero, a qua aetate iuuenes et in quam intellegi debeant.
Titius provided as follows in his codicil: 'I wish all the young men whom I have in my service to be given to Publius Maevius.' I ask from what age to what age 'young men' should be understood.
Marcellus respondit, quos uerbis quae proponerentur demonstrare uoluerit testator, ad notionem eius, qui de ea re cogniturus esset, pertinere: non enim in causa, testamentorum ad definitionem utique descendendum est, cum plerumque abusiue loquantur nec propriis nominibus ac uocabulis semper utantur.
Marcellus replied that whom the testator intended to designate by the words that were propounded belongs to the investigation of the person who is to judge the matter; for in cases of wills, one should not by all means resort to strict definitions, since they mostly speak in an improper sense and do not always use proper names and terms.
ceterum existimari posset iuuenis is, qui adulescentis excessit aetatem, quoad incipiat inter seniores numerari.
For the rest, a young man could be considered to be one who has exceeded the age of an adolescent, until he begins to be numbered among the elders.

Notes

  1. §32.0.69.prrecedi oportet — The present passive infinitive of the intransitive verb recedo, recedi, is used with the impersonal verb oportet to form an impersonal passive construction. It expresses the obligation that 'one should depart' from the meaning of the words.
  2. §32.0.69.1quos uerbis quae proponerentur demonstrare uoluerit testator, ad notionem eius ... pertinere — This is an accusative-with-infinitive construction depending on 'Marcellus respondit'. The subject of the infinitive 'pertinere' is the entire relative clause introduced by 'quos', with its antecedent 'eos' (accusative plural) being omitted. The structure means '[those] whom the testator intended to designate... belong to the investigation of...'.
  3. §32.0.69.1existimari posset — This is the subjunctive imperfect passive (third-person singular, used impersonally), representing a potentiality or possibility in the present ('could be considered') rather than a past contrary-to-fact condition.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §32.0.69.pr-32.0.69.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:32.0.69.pr-32.0.69.1

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.