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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §5.1.13.pr

Determining the Plaintiff in Partition and Boundary Actions

Passage 894 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Regarding the three actions for the division of an inheritance, the division of common property, and the regulation of boundaries, where all parties stand on equal footing, this section explains that the party who initiated the action is considered the plaintiff.

[GAIUS libro septimo ad edictum prouinciale. ] §5.1.13.prIn tribus istis iudiciis familiae erciscundae, communi diuidundo et finium regundorum quaeritur quis actor intellegatur, quia par causa omnium uidetur.
[GAIUS in the seventh book on the Provincial Edict.] In those three actions, namely, for the division of an inheritance, the division of common property, and the regulation of boundaries, it is asked who is to be understood as the plaintiff, because the position of all appears to be equal.
sed magis placuit eum uideri actorem qui ad iudicium prouocasset.
But the more accepted view is that he is deemed to be the plaintiff who initiated the proceedings.

Notes

  1. 5.1.13.prtribus istis iudiciis — The three actions mentioned here—for the division of an inheritance, the division of common property, and the regulation of boundaries—are classic examples of "double actions" (iudicia duplicia) in classical Roman law, where both parties act as both plaintiff and defendant. Consequently, unlike ordinary actions, it is difficult to distinguish clearly between the plaintiff (actor) and the defendant (reus), raising the practical question of who should be deemed the plaintiff.
  2. 5.1.13.prmagis placuit — This is the perfect tense of the impersonal verb placere (to be approved) accompanied by the comparative adverb magis. It is a formulaic expression characteristic of juristic literature, indicating that "the view ... was more widely accepted" or "became the prevailing opinion" after a doctrinal dispute.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §5.1.13.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:5.1.13.pr

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