Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §7.4.13.pr

Acquisition of Fruits upon Usufructuary's Death

Passage 1271 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section discusses the ownership of harvested crops when a usufructuary dies during harvest, citing Labeo and Julian, and contrasts the rules of fruit acquisition for a usufructuary (at gathering) versus a bona fide possessor (at separation from soil).

[PAULUS libro tertio ad Sabinum. ] §7.4.13.prSi fructuarius messem fecit et decessit, stipulam, quae in messe iacet, heredis eius esse Labeo ait, spicam, quae terra teneatur, domini fundi esse fructumque percipi spica aut faeno caeso aut uua adempta aut excussa olea, quamuis nondum tritum frumentum aut oleum factum uel uindemia coacta sit.
[PAULUS from the third book on Sabinus.] If a usufructuary made a harvest and died, Labeo says that the straw which lies in the harvest belongs to his heir, but the ear of grain which is held by the earth belongs to the owner of the estate, and that fruit is gathered by the ear of grain, or by the cut hay, or by the plucked grape, or by the shaken-down olive, although the grain has not yet been threshed, or the oil made, or the vintage gathered.
sed ut uerum est, quod de olea excussa scripsit, ita aliter obseruandum de ea olea, quae per se deciderit, Iulianus ait: fructuarii fructus tunc fieri, cum eos perceperit, bonae fidei autem possessoris, mox quam a solo separati sint.
But while it is true what he wrote concerning the shaken-down olive, Julian says that it is to be observed otherwise concerning that olive which has fallen of its own accord: namely, that fruit becomes the property of the usufructuary when he has gathered them, but of a bona fide possessor as soon as they have been separated from the soil.

Notes

  1. 7.4.13.prpercipi — This infinitive continues the accusative with infinitive (AcI) construction introduced by Labeo ait in the preceding clause, with fructum as its subject. It represents Labeo's legal opinion that 'fruit is gathered'.
  2. 7.4.13.prfructuarii — A genitive of ownership or belonging. Used with fieri, it means 'to become the property of the usufructuary'. In the subsequent clause, bonae fidei... possessoris is also a genitive connected to the omitted fructus fieri.
  3. 7.4.13.prmox quam — Functions as a temporal conjunction, equivalent to simulac or cum primum, meaning 'as soon as' or 'immediately after'. Here, it indicates that the fruits become the property of the bona fide possessor at the very moment they are separated from the soil.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §7.4.13.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:7.4.13.pr

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.