Article Fourth. On the One Consenting

489. Notion. The one consenting is said to be he who by external approval, vote, or sentence influences the damage of the neighbor; of this kind can be a sworn judge who with others gives sentence, a deputy who with others by his vote establishes a law, an elector who with others elects someone to an office or benefice.

The one consenting who by his consent does not influence the damage can sin against charity or even against justice affectively, but not effectively.

490. Obligations as to the consent itself. a. He who culpably gave consent for inflicting damage is bound to revoke it; if he does this before the damage has been inflicted, he is bound to nothing; but if he either has not done this or could not do it, he is held for the damage.

b. If in good faith he gave consent for inflicting damage, once the error has been detected he is bound to revoke it; if he has done this or could not do it, he is bound to nothing.

491. Obligations toward the damaged person. 1. The one consenting is bound to repair the damages into which the consent efficaciously influences; but it certainly efficaciously influences those damages for the infliction of which the consent is necessary.

Whether he who gives an unjust vote which is not necessary is bound to restitution.

a. Those who by agreement (for example, among the members of some faction), or at the same time (for example, by rising), or secretly (for example, by secret ballots) give a vote, all are equally bound to restitution. The reason for the first is that, once a conspiracy has been entered, each influences the vote of the others and therefore the damage; the reason for the second is that no one gave his vote earlier and no one later, and therefore all and each place one morally unified action for producing the effect, which therefore is attributed equally to each; the reason for the third is that it is unknown who was earlier or later, and therefore the effect is attributed equally to each, since each placed an action efficacious of itself of the effect.

Yet if even in secret voting it could be established that the vote of someone certainly did not influence the damage, he would be excused from restitution just as in voting which is made openly.¹

b. If they give a vote openly and successively, certainly the first, whose vote is necessary, are bound to repair the damage, even if they foresee that others will not be lacking who would vote in the same way: for these truly and in fact influence the damage.

c. Those who vote when the number necessary for deciding the matter has certainly already been completed are (at least probably) bound to nothing, because they no longer influence the damage already inflicted by others.

This opinion is called probable because there are some who think that in fact all votes influence the effect, because the matter is not decided, that is, the sentence is not fully given, unless when all votes have been given.

2. He who gives an unjust vote which is the sole means for impeding a greater damage is not bound to repair the damage; indeed he acts licitly if the thing to which he consents by his vote is not intrinsically evil, and if it is publicly known that this is done only to forestall a greater evil.

¹ Cf. Ballerini-Palmieri III, n. 366, 5.