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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §50.17.29.pr

Inability of Time to Cure What Is Initially Void

Passage 9089 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section states a famous principle of Roman law that what is legally defective from the very beginning cannot be rendered valid merely by the passage of time.

[PAULUS libro octauo ad Sabinum. ] §50.17.29.prQuod initio uitiosum est, non potest tractu temporis conualescere.
[PAULUS, in his eighth book on Sabinus.] What is defective from the beginning cannot become valid by the passage of time.

Notes

  1. §50.17.29.prQuod initio uitiosum est — The relative clause introduced by the relative pronoun `quod` functions as the subject of the main verb `potest`. The antecedent (such as `id`) is omitted. `initio` is an ablative of time or state used adverbially, meaning 'in the beginning' or 'at the outset'.
  2. §50.17.29.prtractu temporis — Consists of `tractu`, the ablative singular of the fourth-declension noun `tractus` (drawing out, passage), and `temporis`, the genitive singular of `tempus` (time). The ablative expresses means or cause, translating to 'by the passage of time' or 'with the lapse of time'.
  3. §50.17.29.prconualescere — The present active infinitive of `conualesco` (to gain strength, recover, become valid), functioning as a complementary infinitive with the auxiliary verb `potest`. In a legal context, it refers to an invalid act 'gaining legal force' or 'becoming valid'.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §50.17.29.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:50.17.29.pr

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