The Digest of Justinian, Volume 1

BOOK ONE JUSTICE AND LAW

O U R L O R D T H E M O S T H O L Y E M P E R O R J U S T I N I A N ' S D I G E S T S OR P A N D E C T S O F T H E LAW I N A N U T S H E L L C O L L E C T E D OUT O F E V E R Y A N C I E N T S O U R C E BOOK ONE JUSTICE AND LAW 1 ULPIAN, Institutes, book 1: A law student at the outset of his studies ought first to know the derivation of the word jus. Its derivation is from justitia.' For, in terms of Celsus' elegant definition, the law is the art of goodness and fairness. 1. Of that art we [jurists] are deservedly called the priests. For we cultivate the virtue of justice and claim awareness of what is good and fair, discriminating between fair and unfair, distinguishinglawful from unlawful, aiming to make men good not only through fear of penalties but also indeed under allurement of rewards, and affecting a philosophy which, if I am not deceived, is genuine, not a sham. 2. There are two branches of legal study: public and private law. Public law is that which respects the establishment of the Roman commonwealth, private that which respects individuals' interests, some matters being of public and others of private interest. Public law covers religious affairs , the priesthood, and offices of state. Private law is tripartite, being derived from principles of jus naturale,jus gentium, or jus civile. 3. Jus naturale is that which nature has taught to all animals; for it is not a law specificto mankind but is common to all animals-land animals, sea animals, and the birds as well. Out of this comes the union of man and woman which we call marriage, and the procreation of children, and their rearing. So we can see that the other animals, wild beasts included, are rightly understood to be acquainted with this law. 4. Jus gentium,the law of nations, is that which all human peoples observe. That it is not co-extensive with natural law can be grasped easily, since this latter is common to all animals whereas jus gentium is common only to human beings among themselves. 2 POMPONIUS, Manual, sole book: For example, religious duties toward God, or the duty to be obedient to one's parents and fatherland. 3 FLORENTINUS, Institutes, book 1: Or the right to repel violent injuries. You see, it emerges from this law (jusgentium)that whatever a person does for his bodily security he can be held to have done rightfully; and since nature has established among 1. Jus cannot be exactly translated from Latin into English. 2 BOOK ONEIJUSTICE AND LAW us a relationship of sorts, it follows that it is a grave wrong for one human being to encompass the life of another. 4 ULPIAN,Institutes, book 1: Manumissions also belong to the jus gentium. Manumission means sending out of one's hand, that is, granting of freedom. For whereas one who is in slavery is subjected to the hand (manus) and power of another, on being sent out of hand he is freed of that power. All of which originated from the jus gentium , since, of course, everyone would be born free by the natural law, and manumission would not be known when slavery was unknown. But after slavery came in by the jus gentium, there followed the boon (beneficium) of manumission. And thenceforth, we all being called by the one natural name "men," in the jus gentium there came to be three classes: free men, and set against those slaves and the third class, freedmen, that is, those who had stopped being slaves. 5 HERMOGENIAN, Epitome o f Law, book 1: As a consequence of this jus gentium, wars were introduced, nations differentiated, kingdoms founded, properties individuated , estate boundaries settled, buildings put up, and commerce established, including contracts of buying and selling and letting and hiring (except for certain contractual elements established through jus civile). 6 ULPIAN,Institutes, book 1: The jus civile is that which neither wholly diverges from the jus naturale and jus gentium nor follows the same in every particular. And so whenever to the common law we add anything or take anything away from it, we make...