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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §33.1.8.pr

Similarities and Differences Between Annual Legacies and Usufruct

Passage 4935 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Gaius explains that although a legacy payable annually is similar to a usufruct in being terminated by death, they differ in whether they are terminated by capitis deminutio and how rights or fruits are transmitted to heirs upon death during a term.

[GAIUS libro quinto ad legem Iuliam et Papiam. ] §33.1.8.prIn singulos annos relictum legatum simile est usui fructui, cum morte finiatur.
[GAIUS, book five on the Lex Julia et Papia.] A legacy left for each individual year is similar to a usufruct, since it is terminated by death.
sane capitis deminutione non finitur, cum usus fructus finiatur: et usus fructus ita legari potest: 'Titio usum fructum fundi lego et quotiensque capite minutus erit, eundem usum fructum ei do'. illud certe amplius est in hoc legato, quod in ingressu cuiuslibet anni si decesserit legatarius, eius anni legatum heredi suo relinquit: quod in usu fructu non ita est, cum fructuarius, etiamsi maturis fructibus, nondum tamen perceptis decesserit, heredi suo eos fructus non relinquet.
To be sure, it is not terminated by capitis deminutio, whereas a usufruct is so terminated; and a usufruct can be bequeathed thus: 'I bequeath to Titius the usufruct of the land, and as often as he undergoes capitis deminutio, I give the same usufruct to him.' There is certainly this wider scope in this legacy, that if the legatee dies at the beginning of any year, he leaves the legacy of that year to his heir; which is not the case in a usufruct, since if the usufructuary dies, even though the fruits are ripe but not yet harvested, he will not leave those fruits to his heir.

Notes

  1. 33.1.8.prcum morte finiatur — The conjunction 'cum' introduces a subjunctive clause of cause or characteristic, explaining the ground for the similarity ('since it is terminated by death').
  2. 33.1.8.pretiamsi maturis fructibus, nondum tamen perceptis — Ablative absolute constructions, to be understood as 'maturis fructibus [existentibus]' and 'nondum tamen perceptis [fructibus]'. Since a usufructuary only acquires ownership of fruits by gathering them (perceptio), if they die before gathering, the fruits (even if ripe) do not pass to their heir.
  3. 33.1.8.prquod in usu fructu non ita est — The relative pronoun 'quod' functions as a relative connection (connecting relative) referring back to the whole preceding fact of transmitting the year's legacy to the heir.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §33.1.8.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:33.1.8.pr

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