Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §39.6.2.pr

Julian's Three Types of Donations Mortis Causa

Passage 6252 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Ulpian quotes Julian to distinguish and explain the three types of donations mortis causa: those made solely from the contemplation of mortality, those made under imminent danger with immediate transfer of property, and those made under danger where transfer is conditional upon death.

[ULPIANUS libro trigensimo secundo ad Sabinum. ] §39.6.2.prIulianus libro septimo decimo digestorum tres esse species mortis causa donationum ait, unam, cum quis nullo praesentis periculi metu conterritus, sed sola cogitatione mortalitatis donat. aliam esse speciem mortis causa donationum ait, cum quis imminente periculo commotus ita donat, ut statim fiat accipientis. tertium genus esse donationis ait, si quis periculo motus non sic det, ut statim faciat accipientis, sed tunc demum, cum mors fuerit insecuta.
[ULPIANUS, from the thirty-second book on Sabinus.] Iulianus, in the seventeenth book of his Digests, says that there are three types of donations mortis causa: one, when someone, not terrified by any fear of present danger, but solely by the contemplation of mortality, makes a donation; another type of donation mortis causa, he says, is when someone, moved by an imminent danger, donates in such a way that it immediately becomes the property of the recipient; the third type of donation, he says, is if someone, moved by danger, does not give in such a way as to make it immediately the property of the recipient, but only then when death has followed.

Notes

  1. §39.6.2.praccipientis — A possessive genitive used with the verbs `fiat` (from `fieri`, "to become") and `faciat` (from `facere`, "to make"). `fiat accipientis` means "it becomes the recipient's (property)," and `faciat accipientis` means "he makes (the gift) the recipient's (property)."
  2. §39.6.2.prsi quis periculo motus non sic det — While the first two types (`unam`, `aliam`) are introduced using `cum` with the indicative present (`donat`) to describe factual situations, the third type shifts to `si` with the subjunctive present (`det`) to present a hypothetical case.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §39.6.2.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:39.6.2.pr

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