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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §47.2.92.pr-47.2.92.1

Acquiescence in Theft and the Action for Theft

Passage 7954 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Labeo denies an action for theft to anyone who knew of the theft and did not prevent it, but Paulus counters this, arguing that an action is still available when prevention is impossible or when psychological respect prevents resistance.

[LABEO libro secundo pithanon a Paulo epitomatorum. ] §47.2.92.prSi quis, cum sciret quid sibi subripi, non prohibuit, non potest furti agere.
[LABEO, in his second book of Epitomes of Labeo's Probable Truths by Paulus.] If anyone, knowing that something was being stolen from him, did not prevent it, he cannot bring an action for theft.
§47.2.92.1PAULUS. immo contra: nam si quis scit sibi rapi et, quia non potest prohibere, quieuit, furti agere potest.
PAULUS. Nay, on the contrary: for if anyone knows that something is being taken from him and, because he cannot prevent it, remains silent, he can bring an action for theft.
at si potuit prohibere nec prohibuit, nihilo minus furti aget: et hoc modo patronus quoque liberto et is, cuius magna uerecundia ei, quem in praesentia pudor ad resistendum impedit, furtum facere solet.
But if he could have prevented it and did not prevent it, he will nonetheless bring an action for theft; and in this way a patron also is accustomed to commit theft against his freedman, and so is he, a great respect for whom prevents the other in the present situation, through shame, from resisting.

Notes

  1. 47.2.92.prquid sibi subripi — quid is used here for the indefinite pronoun aliquid, and together with subripi (present passive infinitive) it forms an accusative-and-infinitive (ACI) clause acting as the object of sciret ("that something was being stolen from him").
  2. 47.2.92.1is, cuius magna uerecundia ei, quem in praesentia pudor ad resistendum impedit — A highly condensed structure. is is the subject of the main clause (parallel to patronus), with furtum facere solet as the main verb. cuius is a genitive relative pronoun referring to is and functions as an objective genitive with magna uerecundia (nominative, with est omitted: "great respect for whom"). ei is a dative serving as the object of furtum facere ("to whom"). quem is an accusative relative pronoun referring to ei, acting as the direct object of impedit.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §47.2.92.pr-47.2.92.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:47.2.92.pr-47.2.92.1

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