Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §42.1.23.pr

Dowry Actions Against the Husband's Agent and Competence

Passage 6875 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Explains that in a lawsuit for a dowry brought against a husband's agent or defender, if the husband is alive, the condemnation is limited to his ability to perform, but after his death, it is made for the full amount.

[PAULUS libro sexto ad Plautium. ] §42.1.23.prSi cum procuratore mariti de dote actum fuerit, si quidem uiuo marito condemnatio fiet, in quantum facere potest fiet damnatio (nam et defensor mariti in id, quod ille facere potest, damnatur), mortuo uero marito in solidum.

[PAULUS, in the sixth book on Plautius.] If an action for the dowry is brought against the husband's agent, and if indeed the condemnation takes place during the husband's lifetime, the condemnation shall be made to the extent of what he is able to perform (for even the husband's defender is condemned to the extent of what the husband can perform), but after the husband's death, for the whole amount.

Notes

§42.1.23.practum fuerit — An impersonal passive of the verb ago in the future perfect tense, meaning "if an action has been brought."
§42.1.23.pruiuo marito ... mortuo uero marito — Both are ablative absolute constructions (noun + adjective/participle in the ablative) expressing temporal circumstances ("while the husband is alive" and "once the husband is dead").
§42.1.23.prille — Refers back to maritus (the husband) rather than the immediately preceding defensor mariti (the husband's defender), indicating that the limit of condemnation is based on the debtor husband's ability to perform, not the defender's own resources.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §42.1.23.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:42.1.23.pr

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