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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §4.8.34.pr-4.8.34.1

Arbitration by Joint Parties and Penalty Incurrence

Passage 856 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

The text discusses whether an arbitration agreement made by one of joint creditors or debtors affects the other, and whether the agreement is dissolved once the penalty has been incurred.

[PAULUS libro tertio decimo ad edictum. ] §4.8.34.prSi duo rei sunt aut credendi aut debendi et unus compromiserit isque uetitus sit petere aut ne ab eo petatur: uidendum est, an si alius petat uel ab alio petatur, poena committatur: idem in duobus argentariis quorum nomina simul eunt.
[PAULUS in his thirteenth book on the Edict.] If there are two joint parties, either of a credit or of a debt, and one of them has entered into an arbitration agreement, and he is forbidden to sue or is forbidden that he be sued: it must be considered whether, if the other party sues or is sued, the penalty is incurred. The same applies in the case of two bankers whose accounts run together.
et fortasse poterimus ita fideiussoribus coniungere, si socii sunt: alias nec a te petitur, nec ego peto, nec meo nomine petitur, licet a te petatur.
And perhaps we will be able to connect sureties in this way, if they are partners; otherwise, neither is it sued from you, nor do I sue, nor is it sued in my name, although it is sued from you.
§4.8.34.1Semel commissa poena solui compromissum rectius puto dici nec amplius posse committi, nisi id actum sit ut in singulas causas totiens committatur.
I think it is more correctly said that, once the penalty has been incurred, the arbitration agreement is dissolved and cannot be incurred further, unless it has been agreed that it should be incurred as many times for each individual cause.

Notes

  1. 4.8.34.pruetitus sit petere aut ne ab eo petatur — The verb uetitus sit (is forbidden) governs both the active infinitive petere and the clause ne ab eo petatur. The latter functions as a prohibition of letting a claim be brought against him, based on an impersonal passive construction.
  2. 4.8.34.prlicet a te petatur — Since petere ab aliquo means 'to demand from someone', the passive a te petatur means 'it is sued from you' (you are sued). The clause beginning with alias explains that, in the absence of a partnership, a claim against one joint party is not considered a claim against or by the party who entered into the arbitration (me).
  3. 4.8.34.1Semel commissa poena solui compromissum rectius puto dici nec amplius posse committi — This is a nested accusative with infinitive (AcI) construction, where puto governs rectius dici (it is more correctly said), which in turn governs two accusative with infinitive clauses as its subjects: compromissum solui (the arbitration agreement is dissolved) and [poenam] nec amplius posse committi (the penalty cannot be incurred further).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §4.8.34.pr-4.8.34.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:4.8.34.pr-4.8.34.1

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