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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §38.16.16.pr

Invalidity of Private Agreements Waiving Inheritance in a Dowry

Passage 6084 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

A case deciding that a father's provision in a dowry deed attempting to bar his daughter from expecting any further inheritance does not change her legal right of succession, as private agreements cannot override the authority of law.

[IDEM libro duodecimo responsorum. ] §38.16.16.prPater instrumento dotali comprehendit filiam ita dotem accepisse, ne quid aliud ex hereditate patris speraret: eam scripturam ius successionis non mutasse constitit: priuatorum enim cautiones legum auctoritate non censeri.
[THE SAME, from the twelfth book of Opinions.] A father specified in a dowry deed that his daughter had received a dowry on the condition that she should expect nothing else from her father's inheritance. It was held that such a writing did not change the right of succession; for the covenants of private individuals are not deemed to have the authority of laws.

Notes

  1. §38.16.16.prita dotem accepisse, ne quid aliud ex hereditate patris speraret — A restrictive condition expressed by the construction 'ita... ne...' ('on the condition that... not'). The verb 'speraret' is in the imperfect subjunctive, following the historic sequence of tenses set by 'comprehendit'.
  2. §38.16.16.prconstitit — An impersonal verb meaning 'it was held/established', which takes the accusative and infinitive clause 'eam scripturam... non mutasse' as its subject. The following clause 'priuatorum... non censeri' is also an accusative with infinitive explaining the underlying reason.
  3. §38.16.16.prlegum auctoritate — Ablative of manner or quality, interpreted as 'with the authority of laws' or 'as having the force of laws'.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §38.16.16.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:38.16.16.pr

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