Commentarivs Tertivs Intestatorvm Hereditates

§ 1. Intestatorum hereditates 〈ex〉 lege xii tabularum primum ad suos heredes pertinent.

Inst. 3, 1, 1. 1; Collat. 16, 2, 1.

§ 2. Sui autem heredes existimantur liberi qui in potestate morientis fuerunt, ueluti filius filiaue, nepos neptisue 〈ex filio〉, pronepos proneptisue ex nepote filio nato prognatus prognataue. nec interest 〈utrum〉 naturales 〈sint〉 liberi an adoptiui. ita demum tamen nepos neptisue et pronepos proneptisue suorum heredum numero sunt, si praecedens persona desierit 〈in potestate parentis esse, siue morte id acciderit,〉 siue alia ratione, ueluti emancipatione. nam si per id tempus quo quisque moritur filius in potestate eius sit, nepos ex eo suus heres esse non potest. idem et in ceteris deinceps liberorum personis dictum intellegemus.

Inst. 3, 1, 1. 2; Collat. 16, 2, 2.

§ 3. Vxor quoque quae in manu uiri est ei sua heres est, quia filiae loco est. item nurus quae in filii manu est, nam et haec neptis loco est. sed ita demum erit sua heres, 〈si〉 filius, cuius in manu fuerit, cum pater moritur, in potestate eius non sit. idemque dicemus et de ea quae in nepotis manu matrimonii causa sit, quia proneptis loco est.

Collat. 16, 2, 3.

§ 4. Postumi quoque, 〈qui〉 si uiuo parente nati essent, in potestate eius futuri forent, sui heredes sunt.

Inst. l. c.; Collat. 16, 2, 4.

§ 5. Idem iuris est de his, quorum nomine ex lege Aelia Sentia uel ex senatusconsulto post mortem patris causa probatur. nam et hi uiuo patre causa probata in potestate eius futuri essent.

Collat. 16, 2, 5; cf. Collat 3, 7.

§ 6. Quod etiam de eo filio, qui ex prima secundaue mancipatione post mortem patris manumittitur, intellegemus.

§ 7. Igitur cum filius filiaue et ex altero filio nepotes neptesue extant, pariter ad hereditatem uocantur; nec qui gradu proximior est, ulteriorem excludit. aequum enim uidebatur nepotes neptesue in patris sui locum portionemque succedere. pari ratione et si nepos neptisue sit ex filio et ex nepote pronepos proneptisue, simul omnes uocantur ad hereditatem.

Inst. 3, 1, 6.

§ 8. Et quia placebat nepotes neptesue, item pronepotes proneptesue in parentis sui locum succedere, conueniens esse uisum est non in capita, sed 〈in〉 stirpes hereditatem diuidi; ita ut filius partem dimidiam hereditatis ferat et ex altero filio duo pluresue nepotes alteram dimidiam; item si ex duobus filiis nepotes extent, ex altero filio unus forte uel duo, ex altero tres aut quattuor, ad unum aut ad duos dimidia pars pertineat et ad tres aut quattuor altera dimidia.

Inst l. c.

Intestate inheritances by the law of the Twelve Tables devolve first on self-successors (sui heredes).

Self-successors are children in the power of the deceased at the time of his death, such as a son or a daughter, a grandchild by a son, a great-grandchild by a grandson by a son, whether such children are natural or adoptive: subject, however, to this reservation, that a grandchild or great-grandchild is only self-successor when the person in the preceding degree has ceased to be in the power of the parent either by death or some other means, such as emancipation; for instance, if a son was in the power of the deceased at the time of his death, a grandson by that son cannot be a self-successor, and the same proviso applies to the subsequent degrees.

§ 3. A wife in the hand of her husband is a self-successor to him, for she is in the position of a quasi daughter; also a son’s wife in the hand of the son, for she is a granddaughter: subject, however, to the proviso that she is not self-successor if her husband is in the power of his father at the time of his father’s death. A wife in the hand of a grandson is a self-successor, subject to the same proviso, because she is in the position of a great-granddaughter.

§ 4. Afterborn children, who, if born in the lifetime of the parent, would have been subject to his power, are self-successors.

Also those in whose behalf the provisions of the lex Aelia Sentia or the senatusconsult have been satisfied by proof of excusable error subsequently to the death of the parent, for if the error had been proved in the lifetime of the parent they would have been subject to his power.

Also, a son, who has undergone a first or second mancipation and is manumitted after the death of the father, is a self-successor.

§ 7. Accordingly, a son or daughter and grandchildren by another son are equally called to the inheritance; nor does the nearer grade exclude the more remote, for justice seemed to dictate that grandchildren should succeed to their father’s place and portion. Similarly, a grandchild by a son and a great-grandchild by a grandson by a son are called contemporaneously to the inheritance.

§ 8. And as it was deemed to be just that grandchildren and great-grandchildren should succeed to their father’s place, it seemed consistent that the number of stems (stirpes), and not the number of individuals (capita), should be the divisor of the inheritance; so that a son should take a moiety, and grandchildren by another son the other moiety; or if two sons left children, that a single grandchild or two grandchildren by one son should take one moiety, and three or four grandchildren by the other son the other moiety.

The words ‘testate’ and ‘intestate,’ in the language of English lawyers, are only applicable, I believe, to a deceased person. The awkwardness of having no corresponding adjectives to couple with succession or inheritance must be my apology for sometimes speaking of testate or intestate succession or inheritance.

For the meaning of suus heres see commentary on 2 §§ 157, 123.

Cf. 1 §§ 29, 32; 2 § 142.

Cf. 1 § 132; 2 § 141.