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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §41.7.2.pr-41.7.2.1

Proculus and Julian on When Ownership of Abandoned Property Ceases

Passage 6828 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This chunk discusses the acquisition of a thing known to be abandoned by its owner, and presents the conflicting views of Proculus and Julian on when the owner's rights cease and transfer, supporting Julian's view.

[PAULUS libro quinquagensimo quarto ad edictum. ] §41.7.2.prPro derelicto rem a domino habitam si sciamus, possumus adquirere.
[PAUL, from his fifty-fourth book on the Edict.] If we know that a thing is regarded as abandoned by its owner, we can acquire it.
§41.7.2.1Sed Proculus non desinere eam rem domini esse, nisi ab alio possessa fuerit: Iulianus desinere quidem omittentis esse, non fieri autem alterius, nisi possessa fuerit, et recte.
But Proculus holds that that thing does not cease to belong to the owner unless it has been possessed by another; Julian, on the other hand, holds that it does indeed cease to belong to the one who abandons it, but does not become another's unless it has been possessed, and this is correct.

Notes

  1. §41.7.2.prrem a domino habitam — This phrase can be interpreted as an accusative with infinitive construction with the copula esse omitted (rem... habitam esse) depending on si sciamus ('if we know that...'), or as a participle habitam modifying rem as the direct object of sciamus. The former interpretation (as an indirect statement) is adopted here.
  2. §41.7.2.1Proculus non desinere — The nominative proper nouns Proculus and Iulianus are followed by infinitives (desinere, fieri), implying the ellipsis of a finite verb of thinking or saying (such as putat or ait), which governs the accusative with infinitive construction (with eam rem as the subject accusative).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §41.7.2.pr-41.7.2.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:41.7.2.pr-41.7.2.1

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