Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2
https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/448
Context
Early in his reign the emperor Justinian directed a comprehensive
reform of Roman Law that compiled and edited earlier jurisprudence. This new sole
authority on legal matters, the Body of Civil Law (Corpus iuris
civilis), contained three parts, the Code,
Digest, and Institutes. The Institutes
was developed under the quaestor Tribonian and the scholars Theophilus and Dorotheus and
published on November 21, 533 C.E. The work was distilled from earlier authoritative
compilations, particularly the Institutes by Gaius of the mid-2nd century
C.E., to serve as an instructional text, but also as a statement of basic law in force.
In this passage from the section “Persons Who May or May Not Alienate” (quibus
alienare licet vel non), the compilers address the legal capacity for the
minor dependents (pupillae) of guardians (tutores)
to transfer ownership of property to other parties, and to receive such transferred
property. They cite a law issued by Tribonian following the request of lawyers at
Caesarea, stating that debtors can pay a minor with the sanction of the guardian, and
that debtors can pay the guardian directly by judicial order.
Text
Ideoque si debitor pupillo solvat, necessaria est tutoris auctoritas:
alioquin non liberabitur. sed etiam hoc evidentissima ratione statutum est in
constitutione, quam ad Caesarienses advocatos ex suggestione
Triboniani, viri eminentissimi, quaestoris sacri palatii nostri, promulgavimus, qua
dispositum est, ita licere tutori vel curatori debitorem pupillarem solvere, ut prius
sententia iudicialis sine omni damno celebrata hoc permittat. quo subsecuto, si et iudex
pronuntiaverit et debitor solverit, sequatur huiusmodi solutionem plenissima
securitas.1
Textual Note
Ed. Mommsen and Krueger [1886] 2000Translation
On the other hand, things can be validly conveyed to pupils of
either sex without the guardian's authority; accordingly, if a debtor wishes to pay a
pupil, he must obtain the sanction of the guardian to the transaction, or else he will
not be released. In a constitution which we issued to the advocates of
Caesarea at the instance of the distinguished Tribonian,
quaestor of our most sacred palace, it has with the clearest reason been enacted that
the debtor of a pupil may safely pay a guardian or curator by having first obtained
permission by the order of a judge, for which no fee is to be payable: and if the judge
makes the order, and the debtor in pursuance thereof makes payment, he is completely
protected by this form of discharge.2
Translation Note
Revised from Moyle 1913 with ref. to Birks and McLeod 1987Works Cited
- 1 Ulpian and Paul, Corpus iuris civilis I: Novellae Institutiones; Digesta, ed. Theodor Mommsen and Paul Krueger, repr. Hildesheim: Weidmann, 2000, vol. 1 (Berlin: Weidmann, 1886), bk: 2, ch: 8.2.
- 2 Justinian I, The Institutes of Justinian Translated into English, trans. John Baron Moyle, 5th ed. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913), p: 56-57.
Additional Bibliography
- Justinian I, Justinian’s Institutes, trans. Peter Birks and Grant McLeod (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1987), p: 16.
How to Cite This Entry
Joseph L. Rife, “Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published April 28, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/448.
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Bibliography:
Joseph L. Rife, “Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2.” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife., edited by Joseph L. Rife. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2023. Entry published April 28, 2023. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/448.About this Entry
Entry Title: Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2
Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:
- Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
- Joseph L. Rife, editor, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
- David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editor, “Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2”
- Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Justinian I, Institutes 2.8.2”
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- Testimonium edited by Joseph L. Rife
- TEI record created by Joseph L. Rife
- Testimonium translated by Joseph L. Rife
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- Testimonium identified by Joseph L. Rife
- Editorial review by Joseph L. Rife