# Institutes of Gaius 3.1.240-243

Roman Law and Society, Institutes of Gaius, 3.1.240 to 3.1.243. Latin.

Canonical: https://interlinea.aeterna-institute.org/library/latin/roman-law-and-society/institutes-of-gaius/3.1.240

(211) To unlawfully kill is understood to mean where this happens with malicious intent or through the negligence of another; loss which results without the fault of the party who causes it not being punishable by any law, and therefore, he who occasions damage under any circumstances, without negligence or malicious intent will go unpunished. (212) It is not only the body of the slave or of the animal which is appraised in the action brought under this law, but if by the death of the slave the owner sustained a greater loss than the value of the said slave amounted to; as for instance, if my slave was appointed heir by someone, and should be killed before he declared his acceptance of the estate by my order, not only his own value is taken into consideration, but also that of the estate which was lost. Likewise, if one of two twins, or one of a company of actors or musicians should be killed, an appraisement is not only made of the one who was killed, but also a computation of the depreciated value of those who remain. The same rule of law applies where one of a pair of mules, or one of a team of four chariot-horses is killed. (213) Moreover, the person whose slave was killed has the choice either of prosecuting for a capital crime the person who killed him, or of bringing an action for damages against him under this law. (214) The clause inserted in this law: "The greatest sum which the property was worth during the year," has the following effect. If the slave who was killed was crippled, or blind of an eye, but had been sound within a year, the estimate shall be made not of his value when he was killed, but of his greatest value during that year; the result of which is that sometimes the party will recover a larger amount than that of the loss which he sustained.

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Roman Law and Society, Institutes of Gaius. Text: The Latin Library (thelatinlibrary.com), used with permission. Changes: HTML markup removed and the text divided into reading sections by Interlinea.
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