Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §44.1.16.pr

Claim for Right of Way and Prejudicial Exception

Passage 7205 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

When a plaintiff claims a right of way to an estate whose ownership is disputed, the defendant is granted an exception against a prejudicial decision, as the right of way cannot be established without first proving ownership of the dominant estate.

[AFRICANUS libro nono quaestionum. ] §44.1.16.prFundum Titianum possides, de cuius proprietate inter me et te controuersia est, et dico praeterea uiam ad eum per fundum Sempronianum, quem tuum esse constat, deberi.
[AFRICANUS in the ninth book of Questions.] You possess the Titian estate, concerning the ownership of which there is a dispute between you and me, and I claim besides that a right of way to it is owed through the Sempronian estate, which is established to be yours.
si uiam petam, exceptionem 'quod praeiudicium praedio non fiat' utilem tibi fore putauit, uidelicet quod non aliter uiam mihi deberi probaturus sim, quam prius probauerim fundum Titianum meum esse.
If I should sue for the right of way, he [Julian] thought that the exception 'lest a prejudicial decision be made regarding the estate' would be useful to you; namely, because I would not prove that the right of way is owed to me otherwise than by first proving that the Titian estate is mine.

Notes

  1. §44.1.16.prdeberi — The passive infinitive deberi here indicates that the right of way is 'owed' or 'due' to the plaintiff (or imposed on the defendant's estate) as a servitude. It forms an accusative with infinitive clause (uiam... deberi) depending on dico.
  2. §44.1.16.prexceptionem 'quod praeiudicium praedio non fiat' — An exception meaning 'lest a prejudicial decision be made against the estate'. This is granted to the defendant to prevent a judgment on a servitude (the right of way) from prematurely deciding the principal issue of ownership of the estate. Praedio is a dative depending on fiat.
  3. §44.1.16.prnon aliter uiam mihi deberi probaturus sim, quam prius probauerim — A correlative construction of non aliter... quam ('not otherwise... than'), functioning conditionally. It means the plaintiff cannot prove the right of way unless they first prove ownership of the dominant estate. Probaturus sim is a subjunctive of indirect reason after quod.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §44.1.16.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:44.1.16.pr

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