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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §49.6.1.pr-49.6.1.2

Dismissory Letters of Appeal and Appellant Protection

Passage 8509 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This text regulates the system of "dismissory letters" (apostoli) sent from the lower-court judge to the appellate authority, specifying their content and protecting the appellant if the letters were not issued due to the judge's delay despite timely requests.

[MARCIANUS libro secundo de appellationibus. ] §49.6.1.prPost appellationem interpositam litterae dandae sunt ab eo, a quo appellatum est, ad eum, qui de appellatione cogniturus est, siue principem siue quem alium, quas litteras dimissorias siue apostolos appellant. §49.6.1.1Sensus autem litterarum talis est: appellasse puta Lucium Titium a sententia illius, quae inter illos dicta est.
[MARCIANUS, On Appeals, Book II] After an appeal has been interposed, letters must be given by the person from whom the appeal was made to the person who is to take cognizance of the appeal, whether the emperor or someone else; which letters they call "dismissory letters" or "apostoli." Now, the tenor of the letters is as follows: suppose, for instance, that Lucius Titius has appealed from the judgment of that person, which was pronounced between them.
§49.6.1.2Sufficit autem petisse intra tempus dimissorias instanter et saepius, ut et si non accipiat, id ipsum contestetur: nam instantiam petentis dimissorias constitutiones desiderant.
Moreover, it is sufficient to have requested the dismissory letters within the prescribed time, urgently and repeatedly, so that, even if he does not receive them, he may attest that very fact; for the imperial constitutions require diligence on the part of the person requesting dismissory letters.
aequum est igitur, si per eum steterit, qui debebat dare litteras, quo minus det, ne hoc accipienti noceat.
Therefore, if it is due to the person who ought to have given the letters that he did not give them, it is equitable that this should not prejudice the recipient.

Notes

  1. §49.6.1.prab eo, a quo appellatum est — appellatum est is the impersonal passive perfect of the intransitive verb appellare ('an appeal was made'). ab eo is the antecedent of the relative clause, referring to the judge of the first instance from whom the appeal was taken.
  2. §49.6.1.1appellasse puta Lucium Titium — puta is the second-person singular present imperative of putare ('to think, suppose'), used adverbially to mean 'for instance, suppose.' It governs an accusative and infinitive (AcI) construction, with Lucium Titium as the subject accusative and appellasse (contracted form of appellavisse, perfect active infinitive) as the infinitive.
  3. §49.6.1.2si per eum steterit... quo minus det — The expression per aliquem stat quo minus with the subjunctive is an idiomatic construction meaning 'it is due to someone that something is not done' or 'someone prevents something from happening.' Here, steterit (perfect subjunctive or future perfect indicative) and det (present subjunctive) are combined to mean 'if it was due to the person who ought to have given the letters that he did not give them.'

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §49.6.1.pr-49.6.1.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:49.6.1.pr-49.6.1.2

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