Latin
1.610
Roman Law and Society, Institutes of Justinian 1.610
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16. But, as there still remained matter of dispute between the agnati and the above-mentioned grandchildren, the agnati claiming the fourth part of the estate of the deceased by virtue of a constitutio, we have rejected this constitutio, and have not permitted it to be inserted into our code from that of Theodosius. And in the constitutio we have ourselves promulgated we have completely departed from the provisions of those former constitutiones, and have enacted that agnati shall take no part in the succession of the deceased, when there are grandchildren born of a daughter, or great-grandchildren born of a granddaughter, or any other descendants from a female in the direct line; as those in a collateral line ought not to be preferred to direct descendants. This constitutio is to prevail from the date of its promulgation in its full force, as we here again enact. And as the old law ordered, that between the sons of the deceased and his grandsons by a son, every inheritance should be divided per stirpes, and not per capita, so we also ordain that a similar distribution shall be made between sons and grandsons by a daughter, and between grandsons and granddaughters, great-grandsons and great-granddaughters, and all other descendants in a direct line; so that the children of either branch may receive the share of their mother or father, their grandmother or grandfather, without any diminution; and, if of the one branch there should be one or two children, and of the other branch three or four, then the one or two shall have one-half, and the three or four the other half of the inheritance.