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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §48.10.11.pr

Exemptions for Writing Bequests for Soldier Sons and Mothers

Passage 8277 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section outlines the conditions under which a father writing a provision for his soldier son in a fellow soldier's will, or a son writing for his mother by the testator's command, is exempt from punishment.

[MARCIANUS libro primo de iudiciis publicis. ] §48.10.11.prSi pater filio suo militi, quem habet in potestate, testamento commilitonis filii aliquid adscripserit, quem conmilitonem in militia nouit: quia patri non adquiritur, extra poenam est.
[MARCIANUS, On Public Prosecutions, Book I] If a father writes down something in favor of his son, a soldier whom he has under his power, in the will of a fellow soldier of his son, which fellow soldier the son knew in the military service: because it is not acquired for the father, he is exempt from punishment.
Et cum matri filius adscripserat, diui fratres rescripserunt, cum iussu testatoris hoc scripsit, impunitum eum esse matremque capere posse.
And when a son had written down something in favor of his mother, the Divine Brothers replied by rescript that if he wrote this by the order of the testator, he is unpunished and the mother can take the bequest.

Notes

  1. §48.10.11.prtestamento commilitonis filii — The genitive "filii" modifies "commilitonis" (of the fellow soldier). The entire phrase means "in the will of the fellow soldier of the son," where "fellow soldier" corresponds to the preceding "filio suo militi" (his son, a soldier).
  2. §48.10.11.prquem conmilitonem in militia nouit — The subject of the verb "nouit" is most naturally understood as the son ("filius") in light of the context and the preceding "filio suo militi" (his son, a soldier). Thus, it means "whom (the fellow soldier) the son knew in the military service."
  3. §48.10.11.prquia patri non adquiritur — In Roman law, property acquired by a son-in-power who is a soldier (filius familias miles) in connection with military service constitutes "peculium castrense" (military peculium), which belongs to the son himself, not to his father. Because the benefit of the written provision does not accrue to the father, the father is exempt from the penalties of the Lex Cornelia.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §48.10.11.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:48.10.11.pr

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