Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §38.5.9.pr

Prohibition of Legacies Diminishing the Patron's Share

Passage 6011 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section rules that while a freedman may make gifts to deserving friends during his lifetime, he is forbidden from leaving legacies—even to such friends—if the purpose is to diminish his patron's statutory share.

[IDEM libro sexagensimo quarto digestorum. ] §38.5.9.prUiuus libertus donare bene merentibus amicis potest: legare uero nec bene merentibus amicis potest, quo patroni partem minuat.
[THE SAME in the sixty-fourth book of the Digests.] A freedman, while alive, can make gifts to friends who have deserved well of him; but he cannot leave legacies, even to friends who have deserved well of him, for the purpose of diminishing the patron's share.

Notes

  1. §38.5.9.prUiuus — The nominative adjective is used predicatively with the subject `libertus`, expressing the temporal state "while alive" or "during his lifetime."
  2. §38.5.9.prnec bene merentibus amicis — Here `nec` has the force of "not even," emphasizing the negation in relation to the dative indirect object `bene merentibus amicis` ("even to friends who have deserved well").
  3. §38.5.9.prquo patroni partem minuat — The conjunction `quo` introduces a purpose clause with the subjunctive `minuat`, meaning "in order to diminish the patron's share." This is an instance of `quo` introducing a purpose clause without a comparative adjective or adverb.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §38.5.9.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:38.5.9.pr

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.