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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §37.1.12.pr-37.1.12.1

Possession for Unborn Persons and Prohibition of Taking

Passage 5721 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This text states that certain individuals, such as unborn children and insane persons, should be admitted to the possession of goods even against the treasury and public bodies, and establishes that the possession of goods is also unavailable whenever laws or constitutions prohibit taking an inheritance.

[ULPIANUS libro quadragesimo octauo ad edictum. ] §37.1.12.prNon est ambigendum, quod plerumque et contra fiscum et contra rem publicam admitti debeant quidam, ut puta uenter, item furiosus, item is qui captiui bonorum possessionem petit.
[ULPIAN, book 48 on the edict.] It is not to be doubted that, in most cases, certain persons—such as, for instance, an unborn child, likewise an insane person, and likewise one who petitions for the possession of the goods of a captive—ought to be admitted even against the fiscus and against a public body.
§37.1.12.1Ubicumque lex uel senatus uel constitutio capere hereditatem prohibet, et bonorum possessio cessat.
Wherever a law, a decree of the senate, or an imperial constitution prohibits taking an inheritance, the possession of goods also ceases to apply.

Notes

  1. §37.1.12.prnon est ambigendum, quod — The impersonal passive periphrastic `non est ambigendum` (it is not to be doubted) governs a `quod` clause with the subjunctive (`debeant`), which is used here instead of the classical `quin` clause to express a statement of fact.
  2. §37.1.12.prrem publicam — In this context, `res publica` refers not only to the state as a whole but also to municipal communities (public bodies) alongside the imperial treasury (`fiscus`).
  3. §37.1.12.1senatus — Placed in parallel with `lex` (law) and `constitutio` (imperial constitution), the nominative singular `senatus` (senate) here stands for `senatus consultum` (decree of the senate).
  4. §37.1.12.1et — This `et` is used adverbially in the sense of "also" (or "even"), emphasizing that when civil-law inheritance (`hereditas`) is prohibited, the praetorian possession of goods (`bonorum possessio`) also ceases to be available.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §37.1.12.pr-37.1.12.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:37.1.12.pr-37.1.12.1

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