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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §5.3.34.pr-5.3.34.1

Inheritance of Soldier Sons and Assets Held by Slaves

Passage 1032 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section discusses the petition for the inheritance of a son-in-power who is a soldier, as well as whether a petition can be brought against a father or master when a slave or a son-in-power holds or sells heritable assets.

[PAULUS libro uicensimo ad edictum. ] §5.3.34.prFilii familias militis puto peti posse hereditatem ex testamento nobis obuenientem.
[PAULUS in his twentieth book on the Edict.] I think that a petition can be made for the inheritance of a son-in-power who is a soldier, which comes to us by a will.
§5.3.34.1Si seruus uel filius familias res hereditarias teneat, a patre dominoue peti hereditas potest, si facultatem restituendarum rerum habet.
If a slave or a son-in-power holds heritable property, the inheritance can be claimed from the father or the master, provided that he has the power to restore the things.
certe si pretium rerum hereditariarum uenditarum in peculio serui habeat, et Iulianus existimat posse a domino quasi a iuris possessore hereditatem peti.
Certainly, if the master has the price of the sold heritable things in the peculium of the slave, Julian also thinks that the inheritance can be claimed from the master as if from a possessor of a right.

Notes

  1. §5.3.34.prFilii familias militis — The genitive filii familias militis modifies the noun hereditatem. Under Roman law, a son-in-power (filius familias) generally lacked proprietary capacity, but if he was a soldier, he was permitted to make a will regarding his military peculium (peculium castrense), which is why his "inheritance" (hereditas) is discussed here.
  2. §5.3.34.1facultatem restituendarum rerum — The noun facultatem (accusative singular feminine) is modified by the gerundive phrase restituendarum rerum (genitive plural feminine, equivalent to a gerund construction), meaning "the power (or ability) to restore the things."
  3. §5.3.34.1quasi a iuris possessore — A iuris possessor (possessor of a right) refers to someone who claims an intangible right, such as an inheritance, as belonging to themselves, in contrast to a corporis possessor who physically possesses tangible things. Here, it states that if the price from the sale of heritable assets is in the slave's peculium, the petition for inheritance can be brought against the master as if he were a 'possessor of a right.'

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §5.3.34.pr-5.3.34.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:5.3.34.pr-5.3.34.1

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