Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §41.1.48.pr-41.1.48.2

Acquisition and Scope of Fruits by a Bona Fide Purchaser

Passage 6678 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Discusses the acquisition of fruits by a bona fide purchaser, who enjoys almost the same rights as an owner regardless of whether the property itself is subject to usucapio, how subsequent bad faith affects fruit acquisition, and the classification of sheep offspring, milk, and wool as fruits.

[IDEM libro septimo ad Plautium. ] §41.1.48.prBonae fidei emptor non dubie percipiendo fructus etiam ex aliena re suos interim facit non tantum eos, qui diligentia et opera eius peruenerunt, sed omnes, quia quod ad fructus attinet, loco domini paene est.
[THE SAME, from the Commentary on Plautius, book 7] A bona fide purchaser undoubtedly, by gathering the fruits, makes them meanwhile his own even from another's property; not only those which have accrued through his care and labor, but all of them, because as far as the fruits are concerned, he is almost in the position of an owner.
denique etiam priusquam percipiat, statim ubi a solo separati sunt, bonae fidei emptoris fiunt.
Finally, even before he gathers them, as soon as they are separated from the soil, they become the property of the bona fide purchaser.
nec interest, ea res, quam bona fide emi, longo tempore capi possit nec ne, ueluti si pupilli sit aut ui possessa aut praesidi contra legem repetundarum donata ab eoque abalienata sit bonae fidei emptori.
Nor does it matter whether or not the thing which I bought in good faith can be acquired by long-term possession; for instance, if it belongs to a ward, or was possessed by force, or was donated to a provincial governor contrary to the law on extortion and alienated by him to a bona fide purchaser.
§41.1.48.1In contrarium quaeritur, si eo tempore, quo mihi res traditur, putem uendentis esse, deinde cognouero alienam esse, quia perseuerat per longum tempus capio, an fructus meos faciam.
On the other hand, the question is raised: if at the time the thing is delivered to me, I believe it belongs to the seller, and later I discover that it belongs to another, do I make the fruits my own, since acquisition by long-term possession continues to run?
Pomponius uerendum, ne non sit bonae fidei possessor, quamuis capiat: hoc enim ad ius, id est capionem, illud ad factum pertinere, ut quis bona aut mala fide possideat: nec contrarium est, quod longum tempus currit, nam e contrario is, qui non potest capere propter rei uitium, fructus suos facit.
Pomponius says it is to be feared that he is not a bona fide possessor, even though he may acquire by possession; for the former relates to the law, that is, acquisition by possession, while the latter relates to the fact of whether one possesses in good or bad faith. Nor is the fact that the long term runs to the contrary, for, on the contrary, a person who cannot acquire by possession because of a defect in the thing makes the fruits his own.
§41.1.48.2Et ouium fetus in fructu sunt et ideo ad bonae fidei emptorem pertinent, etiamsi praegnates uenierint uel subreptae sint.
The offspring of sheep are also included in the fruits, and therefore they belong to the bona fide purchaser, even if the sheep were sold pregnant or had been stolen.
et sane quin lac suum faciat, quamuis plenis uberibus uenierint, dubitari non potest: idemque in lana iuris est.
And indeed, it cannot be doubted that he makes their milk his own, even if they were sold with full udders; and the same rule of law applies to the wool.

Notes

  1. §41.1.48.prpercipiendo — The ablative of the gerund expressing means ('by gathering'). It refers to the physical act of gathering (perceptio) required for a bona fide purchaser to acquire ownership of fruits.
  2. §41.1.48.prloco domini paene est — loco is an ablative of position without the preposition in, meaning 'in the position of'. It indicates the legal fiction that the bona fide purchaser is treated as almost equivalent to an owner in terms of fruit acquisition.
  3. §41.1.48.1uerendum, ne non sit — The ne non clause following an expression of fear (here, the impersonal gerundive uerendum [esse] 'it is to be feared') expresses a negative fear ('it is to be feared that he is not...').
  4. §41.1.48.1hoc enim ad ius... illud ad factum — The reference of the contrasting demonstratives hoc (referring to the closer/latter concept, i.e., usucapio/capio) and illud (referring to the remoter/former concept, i.e., the factual state of possession). In this context, hoc refers to the law (ius, namely capio), and illud refers to the fact (factum) of whether one possesses in good or bad faith.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §41.1.48.pr-41.1.48.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:41.1.48.pr-41.1.48.2

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.