De tabulis exhibendis
(Concerning the production of papers relating to a will.)
1 Ulpianus libro sexagensimo octavo ad edictum. Praetor ait: ‘Quas tabulas Lucius Titius ad causam testamenti sui pertinentes reliquisse dicetur, si hae penes te sunt aut dolo malo tuo factum est, ut desinerent esse, ita eas illi exhibeas. item si libellus aliudve quid relictum esse dicetur, decreto comprehendam’. 1Si quis forte confiteatur penes se esse testamentum, iubendus est exhibere, et tempus ei dandum est, ut exhibeat, si non potest in praesentiarum exhibere. sed si neget se exhibere posse vel oportere, interdictum hoc competit. 2Hoc interdictum pertinet non tantum ad testamenti tabulas, verum ad omnia, quae ad causam testamenti pertinent: ut puta et ad codicillos pertinet. 3Sive autem valet testamentum sive non, vel quod ab initio inutiliter factum est, sive ruptum sit vel in quo alio vitio, sed etiam si falsum esse dicatur vel ab eo factum qui testamenti factionem non habuerit: dicendum est interdictum valere. 4Sive supremae tabulae sint sive non sint, sed priores, dicendum interdictum hoc locum habere. 5Itaque dicendum est ad omnem omnino scripturam testamenti, sive perfectam sive imperfectam, interdictum hoc pertinere. 6Proinde et si plures tabulae sint testamenti, quia saepius fecerat, dicendum est interdicto locum fore: est enim quod ad causam testamenti pertineat, quidquid quoquo tempore factum exhiberi debeat. 7Sed et si de statu disceptetur, si testator filius familias vel servus hoc fecisse dicatur, et hoc exhibebitur. 8Item si filius familias fecerit testamentum, qui de castrensi peculio testabatur, habet locum interdictum. 9Idem est et si is, qui testamentum fecit, apud hostes decessit. 10Hoc interdictum ad vivi tabulas non pertinet, quia verba praetoris ‘reliquerit’ fecerunt mentionem. 11Sed et si deletum sine dolo sit testamentum
1 Ulpianus, On the Edict, Book LXVIII. The Prætor says: “If you have in your possession any documents which Lucius Titius is alleged to have left, and which have reference to his will; or if you have committed some fraudulent act to avoid having them in your possession, you must produce them for So-and-So. I shall include in my decree all memoranda, or anything else which he is said to have left.” 1If anyone acknowledges that the will is in his possession, he should be ordered to produce it, and time should be granted him to do so, if he cannot produce it immediately. If he states that he cannot produce it, or denies that this ought to be done, the interdict will lie. 2This interdict not only has reference to the will itself, but also to everything relating to it, as, for instance, a codicil. 3It must be said that the interdict will be applicable whether the will is valid or not (whether it was void originally, or has been broken, or is defective in any other respect, or even if it is alleged to be forged, or to have been made by one who did not have testamentary capacity to make a will). 4It must be held that this interdict will apply whether the will in question was the last or the first one executed. 5Therefore, it should be said that this interdict has reference to every written will, whether it is perfect or imperfect. 6Hence, if there are several wills, made at different times, it must be held that this interdict will apply; for all instruments having reference to the will which have been drawn” up at different times should be produced. 7If a discussion arises with reference to the condition of the testator, and a son under paternal control, or a slave is alleged to have drawn up the will, it shall be produced. 8Moreover, there will be ground for this interdict where a son under paternal control makes a will disposing of his castrense peculium. 9The same rule will apply if he who executed the will dies while in the hands of the enemy. 10This interdict does not refer to the will of a person who is living, because the Prætor employs the term “left.” 11If the will has been erased without fraudulent intent,
2 Paulus libro sexagensimo quarto ad edictum. vel totum vel pars eius,
2 Paulus, On the Edict, Book LXIV. Either entirely, or partially,
3 Ulpianus libro sexagensimo octavo ad edictum. locum habet hoc interdictum. 1Si tabulae in pluribus codicibus scriptae sint, omnes interdicto isto continentur, quia unum testamentum est. 2Si tabulae testamenti apud aliquem depositae sunt a Titio, hoc interdicto agendum est et cum eo qui detinet et cum eo qui deposuit. 3Proinde et si custodiam tabularum aedituus vel tabularius suscepit, dicendum est teneri eum interdicto. 4Si penes servum tabulae fuerint, dominus interdicto tenebitur. 5Si ipse testator, dum vivit, tabulas suas esse dicat et exhiberi desideret, interdictum hoc locum non habebit, sed ad exhibendum erit agendum, ut exhibitas vindicet. quod in omnibus, qui corpora sua esse dicunt instrumentorum, probandum est. 6Si quis dolo malo fecerit, quo minus penes eum tabulae essent, nihilo minus hoc interdicto tenebitur, nec praeiudicatur aliquid legi Corneliae testamentariae, quasi dolo malo testamentum suppresserit. nemo enim ideo impune retinet tabulas, quod maius facinus admisit, cum exhibitis tabulis admissum eius magis manifestetur. et posse aliquem dolo malo facere, ut in eam legem non incidat, ut puta si neque amoverit neque celaverit tabulas, sed idcirco alii tradiderit, ne eas interdicenti exhiberet, hoc est si non supprimendi animo vel consilio fecit, sed ne huic exhiberet. 7Hoc interdictum exhibitorium est. 8Quid sit exhibere, videamus. exhibere hoc est materiae ipsius adprehendendae copiam facere. 9Exhibere autem apud praetorem oportet, ut ex auctoritate eius signatores admoniti venirent ad recognoscenda signa: et si forte non optemperent testes, Labeo scribit coerceri eos a praetore debere. 10Solent autem exhiberi tabulas desiderare omnes omnino, qui quid in testamento adscriptum habent. 11Condemnatio autem huius iudicii quanti interfuit aestimari debet. 12Quare si heres scriptus hoc interdicto experiatur, ad hereditatem referenda est aestimatio: 13Et si legatum sit, tantum venit in aestimationem, quantum sit in legato: 14Et si sub condicione legatum sit, quasi condicione existente sic aestimandum est, nec compelli debebit ad cavendum, ut se restituturum caveat, quidquid consecutus est, si condicio defecerit, quia poena contumaciae praestatur ab eo qui non exhibet. 15Inde quaeritur, si hinc consecutus aestimationem legatarius postea legatum petat, an sit audiendus. et putem, si heres idem praestitit, exceptione doli repellendum, si alius, repelli non oportere. et ideo et si heres sit, qui interdicto usus est aestimationem consecutus, eadem est distinctio. 16Interdictum hoc et post annum competere constat. sed et heredi ceterisque successoribus competit.
3 Ulpianus, On the Edict, Book LXVIII. This interdict will be applicable. 1If the will is written upon several sheets, they are all included under this interdict, because they constitute but a single will. 2If the will is deposited with anyone by Titius, proceedings can be instituted by virtue of this interdict, both against the person who has the will, and against him who deposited it with him. 3Hence, if the guardian of a temple or a notary has the will as a depositary, it must be said that he will be liable under this interdict. 4When the will is in the hands of a slave, his master will be liable under the interdict. 5If the testator himself says that the will is his, and wishes it to be produced, this interdict will not lie; but an action for its production must be brought to enable him to claim the will after it has been produced. This rule should be adopted in all cases where persons claim the ownership of documents. 6If anyone commits fraud in order to avoid having a will in his possession, he will still be liable under this interdict. Proceedings under the Cornelian Law relating to testaments will not, however, be prevented; as, for instance, if the party in question is alleged to have fraudulently suppressed the will. For no one can retain a will with impunity under the pretext that he has committed a more serious crime, and by the production of it, the crime, which is admitted, will be the more readily proved. Anyone may be guilty of fraud and yet not come within the provisions of this law, as for example, if he did not steal or hide the will, but delivered it to another to avoid being compelled to produce it for the inspection of the party making use of the interdict; that is to say, if he did this, not with the intention of suppressing the will, but in order to avoid producing it. 7This interdict is exhibitory. 8Let us see what it is to produce anything. It is to place it in such a position as to afford an opportunity for it to be taken hold of. 9Production must be made before the magistrate in such a way that by his authority the witnesses may be notified to appear and acknowledge their seals. If they do not obey, Labeo says that they should be compelled to do so by the magistrate. 10All persons to whom anything has been left by a will can demand its production. 11In a case of this kind the amount of the judgment should be in proportion to the interest of him for whose inspection the person having the will in his possession refuses to produce it. 12Therefore, if the appointed heir makes use of this interdict, the estimate of the damages must be in proportion to the value of the estate. 13If a legacy is in dispute, the amount of the damages must be in proportion to the value of the legacy. 14If the legacy was bequeathed under a condition, the estimate will be made just as if the condition had been complied with; nor shall the legatee be compelled to give security to restore whatever he obtains, if the condition should not be fulfilled; because the decree imposes the penalty for contumacy incurred by the heir for not producing the will. 15Hence, if the legatee, having received the value of his legacy in this way, afterwards claims the legacy itself, the question arises whether he should be heard. I think that if the heir paid the amount, the legatee will be barred by an exception on the ground of fraud; but if anyone else paid it, he will not be barred. Therefore, the same distinction should be made if the heir obtained the value of the legacy, after having availed himself of the interdict. 16It is established that this interdict can be employed even after the year has elapsed. It will lie in favor of the heir and other successors.
4 Paulus libro sexagensimo nono ad edictum. Si sint tabulae apud pupillum et dolo tutoris desierint esse, in ipsum tutorem competit interdictum: aequum enim est ipsum ex delicto suo teneri, non pupillum.
4 Paulus, On the Edict, Book LXIX. If the will is in the possession of a ward, and he has been deprived of it by the fraudulent act of his guardian, the interdict will lie against the guardian himself; for it is only just that he should be liable for his own crime and not his ward.
5 Iavolenus libro tertio decimo ex Cassio. De tabulis proferendis interdictum competere non oportet, si hereditatis controversia ex his pendet aut si ad publicam quaestionem pertinet: itaque in aede sacra interim deponendae sunt aut apud virum idoneum.
5 Javolenus, On Cassius, Book XIII. The interdict, requiring a person to produce a will, will not lie where any controversy with reference to the estate is pending, or any public question is involved. Therefore the will should in the meantime be deposited either in a temple or in the hands of some responsible person.