Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. Where a man admits that he is a freedman, his patron cannot make him freeborn even by adopting him.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. After the death of his daughter who had been living as her own mistress on the ground of having been lawfully emancipated, and who died after appointing heirs by her will, the father is forbidden to institute proceedings against his own act, claiming that the emancipation was not made legally, or in the presence of witnesses. 1A party who is absent can neither adopt, nor arrogate, nor carry out by the agency of another any of the formalities which are requisite in such cases.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. It is not probable that a person would pay in a city, under compulsion and unjustly, something which he did not owe, if he showed that he was of illustrious rank; since he could invoke the public law, and apply to someone vested with authority who would forbid his being treated with violence. The strongest possible proof of violence must be given in order to overcome this presumption. 1Where anyone being justly terrified at the prospect of a judicial examination to which a powerful adversary threatens to send him in chains; sells under compulsion what he had a right to retain, the matter shall be restored to its proper condition by the Governor of the province. 2Where a money-broker keeps an athlete in confinement contrary to law, and, by preventing him from engaging in contests, compels him to give security for a larger sum of money than he owes; a competent judge will, where this is proved, order the matter to be restored to its proper condition. 3Where anyone is compelled, by the intervention of the officers of the Governor, by force and without judicial proceedings, to pay money which he does not owe to a party claiming under an assignment; the judge will order what was unlawfully extorted to be restored by him who inflicted the injury. If, however, he paid his debt upon a simple demand, and not as the result of judicial proceedings, even though the party should have acted legally and not have collected the debt in an irregular way, still, it is not in accordance with law to set aside a transaction which brought about the payment of an obligation which was due.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. A certain debtor caused a letter to be sent to his creditor, which appeared to have been written by Titius, asking that he be discharged from liability; and the creditor, having been deceived by this letter, discharged the debtor by an Aquilian stipulation and a release. If the letter should afterwards be ascertained to be forged, or worthless, the creditor, if he is over twenty-five years of age, will be entitled to an action on the ground of fraud, and the minor shall obtain complete restitution.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. A minor under twenty-five years of age obtained a judgment ordering that a legacy, based upon a trust, be paid to him; he gave a release for it, and the debtor furnished him security, just as if he would have done if the money had been borrowed. Under these circumstances, the minor is entitled to complete restitution; for the reason that he had obtained a right to bring an action for money on account of a judgment, and by a new contract he had changed that right for one for the institution of proceedings of another kind. 1A minor under twenty-five years of age, without proper deliberation, surrendered land which belonged to his father in settlement of debts shown by the accounts to belong to the guardianship of other minors, whose affairs his father had transacted. Complete restitution was ordered that matters might be equitably restored to their former condition, and the amount of interest which appeared to be due on account of the guardianship was calculated and set off against the amount of the profits received.

Ad Dig. 4,4,44ROHGE, Bd. 6 (1872), S. 356: In integrum restitutio Minderjähriger nach gemeinem Rechte insbesondere gegen wechselrechtliche Verpflichtungen. Selbstständige Vermögensvertretung.Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. All the acts of minors under twenty-five years of age are not invalid, but only those of such as, after investigation, are ascertained to have been overreached; as where they were imposed upon by others, or were deceived by their own credulity, or lost something which they formerly had, or failed to obtain some profit which they could have acquired, or subjected themselves to some liability which they ought not to have assumed.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. Where it is in the power of a soldier to institute criminal proceedings during the time that he is devoting his services to the State, he is not deprived of his right to do so. 1Where a person is detained on an island in accordance with the penalty imposed upon him on account of which he obtained restitution, and it is proved that a portion of the property of which he had not been deprived has been appropriated by some one else, it must be restored to him.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. When a soldier applied to bring suit in his own name in order to obtain an estate which he alleged had been presented to him; he was told that if the gift had been made for the purpose of changing the conditions of the trial, the action must be brought by the former owner, so that it might appear that he had transferred the property to the soldier, rather than a lawsuit.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. Anyone who is not invested with jurisdiction, or is not granted authority by the Emperor, nor appointed by an official who has the right to appoint judges, or not selected by agreement for arbitration, or not confirmed by some law, cannot act as judge.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. Where it is suspected by the legatees that collusion exists between the appointed heirs and the person who is bringing suit against the will as inofficious, it has been established that the legatees have a right to appear and defend the will of the deceased, and they are also permitted to appeal, if a judgment is rendered against the will. 1Illegitimate children also can likewise object to the will of their mother on the ground of inofficiousness. 2When an attack on account of inofficiousness is made against a will, although the case may be settled by compromise, the will still remains in full force and effect; and therefore any testamentary grants of freedom and bequests contained therein still continue to be valid to the extent permitted by the Lex Falcidia. 3Since a woman can never adopt a son without the consent of the Emperor, no man can institute proceedings on the ground of inofficiousness against the will of the woman whom he erroneously thought to be his adoptive mother. 4Proceedings on the ground that a will is inofficious must be instituted in the province in which the testamentary heirs have their residence.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. If the agent of a soldier lends money and takes a surety, it is established that an action will be granted the soldier to whom the money belonged; just as in the case where the guardian of a ward or the curator of a youth stipulates for the repayment of money loaned which belonged to either of them.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. Although a former Governor may have authorized the sale of land belonging to a ward, and his guardian should then purchase it for himself, through the agency of another buyer; still, if the successor of the said Governor should ascertain that fraud and bad faith had been committed by the guardian in violation of the Decree of the Senate, he must determine as to what extent he shall punish such a fraudulent act, by way of example.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. If extortion is committed under a pretended order of the Governor, the Governor of the province shall order the property surrendered through terror, to be restored, and shall punish the crime.

The Same, Opinions, Book V. When a person who has been deported and restored regains his rank by the indulgence of the Emperor, but does not recover all his property, he can neither be sued by his creditors nor by the Treasury. When, however, the power of recovering his property also is offered him by the Emperor, and he prefers to relinquish it, he cannot avoid any actions brought against him before he was sentenced.

Ulpianus, Opinions, Book V. If anyone, after having ransomed a freeborn woman from the enemy, should keep her with him with the intention of having children by her, and afterwards manumits a child born from her, together with its mother, giving it the title of his natural son, the ignorance of the husband and father ought not to affect the condition of those whom he has appeared to manumit; and it should be understood that from the time that he made up his mind to have children by the mother, that the obligation of pledge to which she was liable is extinguished; and therefore it is established that she who returned under the right of postliminium was free and freeborn, and brought forth a freeborn child. Where, however, she was publicly taken as booty by the bravery of a soldier, and the father did not pay anyone money as her ransom, she is said, at the time of her return under the right of postliminium, not to have been with her master, but with her husband. 1Although the State is frequently injured by civil dissensions, still its destruction is not the object of the contest. Those who divide into different factions do not occupy the position of enemies between whom the rights of captivity and postliminium exist, and therefore persons who have been captured and sold, and afterwards manumitted, have been held to have fruitlessly demanded from the Emperor the right of free birth which they do not lose by captivity.

Ad Dig. 50,13,3Windscheid: Lehrbuch des Pandektenrechts, 7. Aufl. 1891, Bd. II, § 388, Note 15.The Same, Opinions, Book V. When a physician, who has been entrusted with the treatment of anyone’s eyes, administers drugs which may cause him to lose his eyesight, in order by doing so to force him to sell him his property, while he is ill, contrary to good faith, the Governor of the province must punish the unlawful act, and order the property to be restored.