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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §33.2.24.pr-33.2.24.1

Security for Loan Interest and Recognition of Usufruct

Passage 4976 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This chunk discusses the attribution of interest on loans made by the deceased and the scope of security required for it, and explains that a testamentary instruction for a slave to serve someone is deemed a bequest of usufruct rather than ownership.

[PAPINIANUS libro septimo responsorum. ] §33.2.24.prUxori fructu bonorum legato faenus quoque sortium, quas defunctus collocauit, post impletam ex senatus consulto cautionem praestabitur.
[PAPINIAN, Opinions, Book VII.] When the usufruct of all property has been bequeathed to a wife, the interest on principal sums invested by the deceased shall also be paid after the security required under the senatusconsultum has been provided.
igitur usuras nominum in hereditate relictorum ante cautionem interpositam debitas uelut sortes in cautionem deduci necesse est.
Therefore, the interest due on claims left in the inheritance before the provision of the security must be included in the security just like the principal.
non idem seruabitur nominibus ab herede factis: tunc enim sortes dumtaxat legatario dabuntur aut, quod propter moram usuras quoque reddi placuit, super his non cauebitur.
The same rule shall not be observed with respect to claims created by the heir: for in that case, only the principal sums shall be given to the legatee, or, even if it has been decided that interest should also be paid on account of default, no security shall be provided for the latter.
§33.2.24.1'Scorpum seruum meum Semproniae 'concubinae meae seruire uolo'. non uidetur proprietas serui relicta, sed usus fructus.
"I wish my slave Scorpus to serve my concubine Sempronia." In this case, it is not considered that the ownership of the slave was bequeathed, but rather the usufruct.

Notes

  1. §33.2.24.prfructu bonorum legato — Ablative absolute construction. Here, "fructu" refers to "ususfructus" (usufruct) and "bonorum" to "of the property". It means "when the usufruct of the property has been bequeathed."
  2. §33.2.24.primpletam ex senatus consulto cautionem — A "noun + dominant participle" (ab urbe condita) construction meaning "after the fulfillment of the security." This security refers to the one required by the senatusconsultum to guarantee the restoration of the principal in the case of quasi-usufruct.
  3. §33.2.24.prnominibus ab herede factis — Dative case. The word "nomen" (originally "name" in accounting books) refers to a "claim" or "debt", and "nomina facere" means "to create claims" or "to make loans." Here, it refers to loan claims created by the heir (using the estate's funds after the succession opened).
  4. §33.2.24.1non uidetur proprietas serui relicta — Although "uidetur" literally corresponds to "seems", in Roman legal texts it signifies a definitive legal determination ("it is considered / deemed"). The participle "relicta" (bequeathed) is a predicate nominative agreeing with the subject "proprietas".

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §33.2.24.pr-33.2.24.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:33.2.24.pr-33.2.24.1

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