Celsus, Digest, Book III. Where the Governor of a province has manumitted anyone, or appointed a guardian before he was aware of the arrival of his successor, these acts shall be valid.

Ad Dig. 2,15,12Windscheid: Lehrbuch des Pandektenrechts, 7. Aufl. 1891, Bd. II, § 414, Note 4.Celsus, Digest, Book III. It should not be tolerated that a party may make a compromise with reference to legacies left to him in general terms by will, and afterwards claim that his object was not to compromise except with reference to what was left him in the first part of the will, and not with reference to what was left him in the last part. But where codicils are produced, I think that he could not improperly say to me that he only was thinking about what was contained in those pages of the will of which he knew at the time of the transaction.

Celsus, Digest, Book III. Upon the land of another, which you purchased without investigation, you built or planted, and you were then evicted. In this instance, a good judge will decide in different ways in accordance with the legal condition of the parties, and the circumstances of the case. Suppose the owner to have done the same thing, then, in order to recover his land, he must reimburse you for your expenses, but only to the amount by which it is rendered more valuable; and if what was added to it amounts to more than the purchase-money, he will be required to pay only what was expended. Suppose that the party is poor, and if he is compelled to pay this he must sacrifice his household goods and the tombs of his ancestors; it will then be sufficient for you to be permitted to remove as much as you can of what you have built, provided that the land will not be rendered worse than it would have been if no building had been erected upon it in the first place. We, however, decided that if the owner is ready to pay you a sum equal to what the possessor would have had if these things were removed, he shall have power to do so. But you are not to be permitted to act maliciously, as, for instance, to scrape off plaster which you have put on, or to deface paintings, which would have no effect except to cause annoyance. Suppose that the owner is a party who expects to sell the property as soon as he recovers it; then, unless he delivers the amount which we have already stated he must deliver in the first example, the damages for which judgment has been rendered against you must be paid after this is deducted.

Celsus, Digest, Book III. I paid you a sum of money on the condition that you should deliver Stichus to me; is this kind of a contract one of incomplete purchase and sale, or does no other obligation arise from it than would from property given in consideration of something which did not take place? I am rather inclined to adopt the last opinion; and therefore, if Stichus had died, I could recover the amount which I gave on the condition that you would deliver Stichus to me. Suppose, for instance, that Stichus belonged to some one else, but you, nevertheless, delivered him to me; I can recover the money from you because you did not transfer the ownership of the slave to the party who received him; and, again, if Stichus is your property, and you are not willing to give security against his recovery by anyone having a better title, you will not be released so that I cannot bring suit to recover the money from you.

Celsus, Digest, Book III. Where three judges are appointed to hear a case, two of them cannot decide it, if one is absent, as all three have been ordered to hear it. If, however, the third is present, and does not concur with the others, the judgment of the two shall stand. For it is certainly true that all of them have rendered a decision.

Celsus, Digest, Book III. An action is nothing else but the right to recover what we are entitled to by means of a judicial proceeding.

The Same, Digest, Book III. Where a man to whom Titius owes ten aurei, and Seius fifteen, stipulates with Attius that he shall pay him what one or the other of them owes, both the obligations are not subjected to novation; but it is in the power of Attius to pay for whichever one he wishes, and release him. Suppose, however, that it had been agreed that he should pay one or the other of the claims; for otherwise, he would be considered to have stipulated for both, and both would have been subjected to novation, if this had been intended.