Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §43.24.14.pr

Liability after Sale or Manumission of an Erring Slave

Passage 7141 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Julian explains the liabilities of and actions against the former owner, the buyer, and the manumitted slave himself, in a case where a slave did work without the owner's knowledge and was subsequently sold or manumitted.

[IULIANUS libro sexagensimo octauo digestorum. ] §43.24.14.prNam et si seruus meus ignorante me opus fecerit eumque uendidero uel manumisero, mecum in hoc solum agi poterit, ut patiar opus tolli, cum emptore autem serui, ut aut noxae dedat aut impensam, quae in restitutione facta fuerit, praestet: sed et cum ipso manumisso recte agi poterit.
[IULIANUS libro sexagensimo octauo digestorum.] For even if my slave, without my knowledge, has done some work, and I have sold or manumitted him, an action can be brought against me only for this, that I permit the work to be removed; but against the buyer of the slave, [an action can be brought] that he either surrender him for noxal liability or pay the expense which was incurred in the restoration; but an action can also rightly be brought against the manumitted person himself.

Notes

  1. §43.24.14.prignorante me — Ablative absolute construction consisting of the present participle `ignorante` and the pronoun `me`. It expresses the attendant circumstance "without my knowledge" or "while I was ignorant" in relation to the action `opus fecerit`.
  2. §43.24.14.prmecum in hoc solum agi poterit — `agi poterit` is an impersonal passive construction meaning "an action can be brought." `mecum` (the preposition `cum` enclitically attached to the ablative pronoun `me`) designates the defendant ("against me"). `in hoc solum` ("only for this") is explained by the following noun clause introduced by `ut`.
  3. §43.24.14.prcum emptore autem serui — The verb phrase `agi poterit` is elided from the preceding clause, establishing a parallel structure: "but against the buyer of the slave, [an action can be brought]." The subsequent `ut` clause (`ut aut noxae dedat...`) specifies the alternative performance required (either noxal surrender or payment of expenses).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §43.24.14.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:43.24.14.pr

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.