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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §41.3.37.pr-41.3.37.1

Lack of Intent to Steal and Taking Possession of Vacant Land

Passage 6789 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

The author explains that alienating another's property by mistake does not constitute theft due to the lack of intention to steal, and then describes how one can peacefully acquire possession of another's vacant land.

[IDEM libro secundo institutionum. ] §41.3.37.prfurtum non committit: furtum enim sine affectu furandi non committitur.
[THE SAME, Institutes, book 2] he does not commit theft; for theft is not committed without the intention of stealing.
§41.3.37.1Fundi quoque alieni potest aliquis sine ui nancisci possessionem, quae uel ex neglegentia domini uacet uel quia dominus sine successore decesserit uel longo tempore afuerit.
A person can also acquire, without force, possession of another's land which is vacant either through the negligence of the owner, or because the owner died without a successor, or has been absent for a long time.

Notes

  1. §41.3.37.praffectu furandi — "The intention of stealing." furandi is the genitive of the gerund of furari (to steal), modifying the noun affectu. It is synonymous with animus furandi in classical Roman law, referring to the subjective requirement (intent) necessary to constitute theft (furtum).
  2. §41.3.37.1quae uel ex neglegentia domini uacet — The antecedent of the relative pronoun quae is possessionem. The verbs in this relative clause (uacet, decesserit, afuerit) are in the subjunctive mood because they express a general or descriptive quality ("the kind of possession which is vacant for such reasons") rather than a specific factual one, known as the subjunctive of characteristic.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §41.3.37.pr-41.3.37.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:41.3.37.pr-41.3.37.1

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