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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §39.3.10.pr-39.3.10.2

Consent of Co-Owners for Drawing Water and Navigable Rivers

Passage 6183 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Ulpian discusses the necessity of consent from all co-owners for drawing water, the validity of subsequent consent, and restrictions on drawing water from navigable rivers.

[ULPIANUS libro quinquagensimo tertio ad edictum. ] §39.3.10.prSi autem plures sint eiusdem loci domini, unde aqua ducitur, omnium uoluntatem esse sequendam non ambigitur: iniquum enim uisum est uoluntatem unius ex modica forte portiuncula domini praeiudicium sociis facere. §39.3.10.1An tamen subsequi uoluntas possit, uideamus.
[ULPIANUS libro quinquagensimo tertio ad edictum.]\n\nBut if there are several owners of the same estate from which water is drawn, there is no doubt that the consent of all must be followed; for it has seemed unjust that the consent of a single owner, perhaps with a very small share, should prejudice his co-owners.\n\nLet us see, however, whether consent can be given subsequently.
et placet nihil interesse, utrum praecedat uoluntas aquae ductionem an subsequatur, quia et posteriorem uoluntatem praetor tueri debet. §39.3.10.2Si flumen nauigabile sit, non oportere praetorem concedere ductionem ex eo fieri Labeo ait, quae flumen minus nauigabile efficiat.
And it is accepted that it makes no difference whether the consent precedes the drawing of water or follows it, because the praetor ought to protect even subsequent consent.\n\nIf a river is navigable, Labeo says that the praetor ought not to permit a drawing of water to be made from it which would render the river less navigable.
idemque est et si per hoc aliud flumen fiat nauigabile.
And the same rule applies if another river should thereby be rendered non-navigable [or less navigable].

Notes

  1. §39.3.10.pruoluntatem unius ex modica forte portiuncula domini — The genitive domini agrees with unius, while the prepositional phrase ex modica... portiuncula indicates the source or basis of his ownership (i.e., a tiny share). Together, they modify uoluntatem (the subject of the accusative-with-infinitive construction), meaning 'the consent of a single owner with perhaps a very small share'.
  2. §39.3.10.1An tamen subsequi uoluntas possit, uideamus — The main clause is the hortatory subjunctive uideamus ('let us see'), which governs the preceding indirect question introduced by an (with the subjunctive possit). tamen is placed inside the indirect question to introduce a concessive or adversative nuance ('however').
  3. §39.3.10.2quae flumen minus nauigabile efficiat — The relative pronoun quae is feminine singular nominative, referring back to its antecedent ductionem (feminine). The subjunctive efficiat is used to express a characteristic or conditional limitation within Labeo's opinion ('a drawing of water of such a kind as to render...').
  4. §39.3.10.2fiat nauigabile — Although the transmitted manuscript text reads fiat nauigabile ('becomes navigable'), the context and parallel passages in the Digest indicate that a negative adverb (such as non or minus) has been omitted. It must be interpreted as 'becomes non-navigable' or 'less navigable'.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §39.3.10.pr-39.3.10.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:39.3.10.pr-39.3.10.2

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