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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §9.2.34.pr

Rejection by a Co-Legatee and Action for a Slain Slave

Passage 1551 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Marcellus argues that when a co-bequeathed slave is killed while one co-legatee is deliberating and after the other has claimed the legacy, and the deliberating party subsequently rejects the legacy, the claiming party can bring an action under the Lex Aquilia as if the slave had been bequeathed to him alone.

[MARCELLUS libro uicensimo primo digestorum. ] §9.2.34.prTitio et Seio Stichum legauit: deliberante Seio, cum Titius uindicasset legatum, Stichus occisus est: deinde Seius repudiauit legatum.
[MARCELLUS, in the twenty-first book of the Digests.] He bequeathed Stichus to Titius and Seius. While Seius was deliberating, and after Titius had claimed the legacy, Stichus was killed. Subsequently, Seius rejected the legacy.
perinde Titius agere possit, ac si soli legatus esset,
Titius can bring an action just as if the legacy had been bequeathed to him alone.

Notes

  1. §9.2.34.prdeliberante Seio — An ablative absolute construction with the present participle deliberante. It indicates the period during which Seius was deliberating whether to accept or reject the legacy.
  2. §9.2.34.prperinde ... ac si soli legatus esset — A comparative clause of unreal condition introduced by "ac si" with the subjunctive pluperfect "esset". Since one of the co-legatees rejected the legacy, the bequest is treated retrospectively as if it had been made to Titius alone, enabling him to bring an action under the Lex Aquilia. "soli" is the dative singular of the pronominal adjective "solus", referring to Titius.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §9.2.34.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:9.2.34.pr

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