entitlement to it, and he may limit himself to the half due to the buyer's admission of his entitlement to that.
Section: If one of the two preemptors says to the buyer, "Your purchase is void," and the other says, "It is valid," the entire preemption belongs to the one who acknowledges the validity. The same applies if he says, "You did not buy it; you were given it as a gift," and the other confirms that he did buy it; then the preemption belongs to the one who confirms the purchase, because his partner has caused his own right to lapse by his admission that there is no valid sale [or no sale at all]. If the buyer uses a ruse to cause the preemption to lapse through a stratagem that does not effectively nullify it, and one of the two preemptors says, "I have caused the preemption to lapse," it accrues entirely to the other due to his partner's admission of its lapse. If one of the two preemptors acts as an agent in the sale or purchase, guarantees the warrant of the sold property, or pardons the preemption before the sale, saying, "I have no right of preemption," it similarly accrues entirely to the other. [If he believes that he has a right of preemption and demands it, and they take the matter to a judge, who rules that he has no right of preemption, it accrues to the other]; because it has lapsed by the judge's ruling, so it is similar to it having lapsed by the right-holder's own waiver.
Section: If a man claims against another a third of his house, and he denies it, then he reaches a settlement with him regarding his claim for a third of another house, it is valid, and preemption becomes mandatory in the third given in settlement; because the claimant asserts that he is justified in his claim, and that what he took is compensation for the third he claimed, so the ruling of his claim becomes binding upon him and preemption becomes mandatory. No preemption is mandatory upon the denier regarding the third settled upon, because he maintains that it remains his property and has not departed from him; he merely gave a third of his house to the claimant to suffice against his evil and to ward off the harm of litigation and the oath from himself, so preemption is not mandatory upon him regarding it. And if the denier says to the claimant, "Take the third you
(18) Omitted from [M]. (19) In [B] and [M]: "saqatat" (it lapsed). (20) In [B]: "wa-al-shira'" (and the purchase). (21) In the manuscripts: "li-dhalika" (for that). (22) In the original and [M]: "fartafa'a" (they took the matter to). (23) Omitted from the original; a lapse of oversight. (24) In [M]: "fa-ankara" (then he denied). (25) Omitted from the original.