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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §9.2.41.pr-9.2.41.1

Wrongful Damage Liability for Destroying or Disclosing a Will

Passage 1558 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section explains the applicability of the action for wrongful damage or injury in cases where a testament is destroyed or disclosed, and notes that destroying testamentary tablets without the intent to steal constitutes wrongful damage rather than theft.

[ULPIANUS libro quadragensimo primo ad Sabinum. ] §9.2.41.prSi quis testamentum deleuerit, an damni iniuriae actio competat, uideamus.
[ULPIANUS, in the forty-first book on Sabinus.] Let us see whether, if anyone destroys a testament, an action for wrongful damage lies.
et Marcellus libro quinto digestorum dubitans negat competere: quemadmodum enim, inquit, aestimatio inibitur? ego apud eum notaui in testatore quidem hoc esse uerum, quia quod interest eius aestimari non potest, uerum tamen in herede uel legatariis diuersum, quibus testamenta paene chirographa sunt.
And Marcellus, in the fifth book of his Digests, hesitantly denies that it lies; for, he says, how will the valuation be made? I noted on his text that, in the case of the testator, this is indeed true, because his interest cannot be estimated; however, the case is different for the heir or the legatees, for whom testaments are almost like written acknowledgments of debt.
ibidem Marcellus scribit chirographo deleto competere legis Aquiliae actionem.
In the same place, Marcellus writes that if a written acknowledgment of debt is destroyed, the action under the Lex Aquilia lies.
sed et si quis tabulas testamenti apud se depositas deleuerit uel pluribus praesentibus legerit, utilius est in factum et iniuriarum agi, si iniuriae faciendae causa secreta iudiciorum publicauit.
But also, if anyone destroys testamentary tablets deposited with him, or reads them in the presence of several people, it is more useful to bring an action on the facts and an action for injury, if he made public the secrets of the dispositions for the purpose of causing injury.
§9.2.41.1Interdum euenire Pomponius eleganter ait, ut quis tabulas delendo furti non teneatur, sed tantum damni iniuriae, ut puta si non animo furti faciendi, sed tantum damni dandi deleuit: nam furti non tenebitur: cum facto enim etiam animum furis furtum exigit.
Pomponius elegantly says that it sometimes happens that a person, by destroying tablets, is not held liable for theft, but only for wrongful damage; as, for example, if he destroyed them not with the intention of committing theft, but only of causing damage. For he will not be liable for theft; because theft requires, along with the act, also the intention of a thief.

Notes

  1. §9.2.41.prquod interest eius aestimari non potest — At the time a testament is destroyed, the testator is still alive and the testament can be freely altered or revoked at any time; thus, his objective pecuniary interest (quod interest) cannot be estimated. In contrast, for the heir or legatees, the destruction of the testament harms their expectation of acquisition, making their interest estimable.
  2. §9.2.41.prsecreta iudiciorum — Here, "iudicia" refers not to judicial judgments, but to the "testamentary dispositions (final decisions)" of the testator. Therefore, "secreta iudiciorum" means "the secrets of the wills."
  3. §9.2.41.1cum facto enim etiam animum furis furtum exigit — A legal principle indicating that for the establishment of theft (furtum), not only a physical act of taking (factum) but also the intention of unlawful appropriation, i.e., "the intention of a thief (animus furandi / animus furis)," is indispensable. If there is only an intention to destroy another's property (animus damni dandi), it constitutes wrongful damage (damnum iniuria datum) under the Lex Aquilia, not theft.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §9.2.41.pr-9.2.41.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:9.2.41.pr-9.2.41.1

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