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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §37.12.3.pr-37.12.3.1

Disgraceful Heirs and Ascendant's Property Rights and Trusts

Passage 5847 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Citing Paconius, the text discusses the ascendant's right to possess property contrary to the will when an emancipated and manumitted child appoints disgraceful heirs, and the exemption from performing trusts for a passed-over or appointed ascendant.

[PAULUS libro octauo ad Plautium. ] §37.12.3.prPaconius ait: si turpes personas, ueluti meretricem, a parente emancipatus et manumissus heredes fecisset, totorum bonorum contra tabulas possessio parenti datur: aut constitutae partis, si non turpis heres esset institutus.
[PAULUS, in the eighth book on Plautius.] Paconius says: if a person emancipated and manumitted by an ascendant has made disgraceful persons, such as a prostitute, his heirs, the possession of the entire property contrary to the provisions of the will is granted to the ascendant; or of the established part, if a non-disgraceful heir had been appointed.
§37.12.3.1Si filius emancipatus testamento suo patrem suum praeterierit siue heredem instituerit, fideicommissa non cogetur pater praestare ex sua parte, quae ei debetur, etiamsi adierit hereditatem.
If an emancipated son, in his will, has passed over his father or has appointed him heir, the father will not be compelled to perform trusts out of his own share which is due to him, even if he has accepted the inheritance.
sed et si filia uel neptis manumissa sit et pater uel anus praeteritus petat bonorum possessionem, eadem quae in filio dicenda sunt.
But also, if a daughter or granddaughter has been manumitted, and the father or grandfather, having been passed over, claims the possession of the property, the same rules must be applied as were stated in the case of a son.

Notes

  1. §37.12.3.premancipatus et manumissus — Usually, a natural child is 'emancipated' (emancipatus) and a slave is 'manumitted' (manumissus). Here, it refers to a person who has undergone both status-related legal procedures, which may reflect a specific legal status where a child was first surrendered into a slave-like status and then manumitted.
  2. §37.12.3.1anus — Although the manuscripts transmit `anus` (old woman, grandmother), in this context and in contrast to the preceding `pater` (father), classical philology generally emends and interprets it as a scribal error for `auus` (grandfather). This translation follows that emendation.
  3. §37.12.3.1fideicommissa non cogetur pater praestare — The nominative `pater` is the subject of the passive verb `cogetur` (will be compelled). `praestare` is a complementary infinitive, and its direct object is the neuter plural accusative `fideicommissa` (trusts). Thus, the structure is 'the father will not be compelled to perform trusts'.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §37.12.3.pr-37.12.3.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:37.12.3.pr-37.12.3.1

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