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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §50.17.1.pr

The Definition and Nature of a Legal Rule

Passage 9061 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Paulus defines the concept of a "rule" (regula) in law, explaining that rules must be derived from existing law and that they lose their function if they are corrupted in any part.

[PAULUS libro sexto decimo ad Plautium. ] §50.17.1.prRegula est, quae rem quae est breuiter enarrat.
[PAULUS in his sixteenth book on Plautius.] A rule is that which briefly narrates a matter as it is.
non ex regula ius sumatur, sed ex iure quod est regula fiat.
Law is not to be taken from a rule, but a rule is to be made from the law that exists.
per regulam igitur breuis rerum narratio traditur, et, ut ait Sabinus, quasi causae coniectio est, quae simul cum in aliquo uitiata est, perdit officium suum.
Therefore, through a rule a brief narration of matters is handed down, and, as Sabinus says, it is as it were a summary of a case, which, as soon as it is corrupted in any point, loses its function.

Notes

  1. §50.17.1.prrem quae est — The relative clause quae est modifies rem, meaning 'a matter as it is' or 'the existing fact'. This emphasizes that a rule (regula) is not an abstract creation but is grounded in pre-existing objective reality or legal facts.
  2. §50.17.1.prsumatur ... fiat — These are the third-person singular present subjunctives of sumere and fieri, expressing hortatory or jussive force ('should be taken / made'). This declaratively establishes the relationship between law and rule, asserting that law determines the rule, not vice versa.
  3. §50.17.1.prcausae coniectio — A technical term in Roman civil procedure referring to a brief summary of the case presented to the judge. Here it is used as a metaphor to illustrate that a legal rule (regula) points directly to the essence of the legal situation rather than explaining the entire legal system in detail.
  4. §50.17.1.prsimul cum — Functions conjunctionally to mean 'as soon as'. Combined with uitiata est (perfect passive of uitiare), it indicates that if a rule contains any error in any part, it immediately loses its practical utility.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §50.17.1.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:50.17.1.pr

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