COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 2025 Rule of Law Report Country Chapter on the rule of law situation in Italy Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions 2025 Rule of Law Report The rule of law situation in the European Union
Date: 2025-07-08
Institutions: European Commission, Secretariat-General
Subjects: Italy, administrative transparency, corruption, democracy, freedom of the press, human rights, independence of the judiciary, pluralism in the media, rule of law, whistleblowing

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Strasbourg, 8.7.2025  SWD(2025) 912 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 2025 Rule of Law Report                  Country Chapter on the rule of law situation in Italy Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions 2025 Rule of Law Report                    The rule of law situation in the European Union {COM(2025) 900 final} - {SWD(2025) 901 final} - {SWD(2025) 902 final} - {SWD(2025) 903 final} - {SWD(2025) 904 final} - {SWD(2025) 905 final} - {SWD(2025) 906 final} - {SWD(2025) 907 final} - {SWD(2025) 908 final} - {SWD(2025) 909 final} - {SWD(2025) 910 final} - {SWD(2025) 911 final} - {SWD(2025) 913 final} - {SWD(2025) 914 final} - {SWD(2025) 915 final} - {SWD(2025) 916 final} - {SWD(2025) 917 final} - {SWD(2025) 918 final} - {SWD(2025) 919 final} - {SWD(2025) 920 final} - {SWD(2025) 921 final} - {SWD(2025) 922 final} - {SWD(2025) 923 final} - {SWD(2025) 924 final} - {SWD(2025) 925 final} - {SWD(2025) 926 final} - {SWD(2025) 927 final} - {SWD(2025) 928 final} - {SWD(2025) 929 final} - {SWD(2025) 930 final} - {SWD(2025) 931 final}  
 
 
ABSTRACT 

With a comprehensive reform of the justice system now in place in Italy, and the adoption of 
the  implementing  legislation  necessary  for  it  to  take  full  effect,  the  High  Council  for  the 
Judiciary took forward the tasks entrusted to it under the implementing legislation. The draft 
constitutional  reform  separating  careers  of  judges  and  prosecutors  is  currently  subject  to 
parliamentary  scrutiny,  while  reservations  expressed  by  the  judiciary  remain.  The 
Constitutional  Court  considered  that  the  comprehensive  reform  of  tax  courts  represents 
adequate  progress  towards  a  fairer  system  that  complies  with  constitutional  principles.  The 
recruitment  of  magistrates  and  administrative  staff  continues  at  a  good  pace,  although 
persistent  shortages  remain.  While  some  further  steps  have  been  taken  towards  the  full 
digitalisation  of  criminal  courts  and  prosecutors’  offices,  technical  challenges  continue  to 
delay  its  effective  rollout.  The  length  of  proceedings  remains  a  serious  issue,  despite  some 
improvement in the disposition time and a positive trend regarding the handling of backlog. 

The National Anti-Corruption Plan was updated, and the newly adopted action plan for open 
government  includes  integrity  actions.  The  law  abrogating  the  offence  of  abuse  of  public 
office  was  declared  in  compliance  with  the  Constitution.  ANAC  and  some  of  the  law 
enforcement  authorities  strengthened  their  human  resources  ANAC  issued  guidelines  on 
revolving doors and those on whistleblowing are under preparation. Actions to improve the 
integrity  of  police  forces  and  training  for  judges  were  launched.  Some  rules  on 
incompatibilities  of  interests  were  introduced,  while  further  legislation  is  pending.  While 
some  expert  hearings  took  place  on  the  draft  laws  on  lobbying,  the  legislation  has  not 
advanced, and the draft laws on political party and campaign financing addressing the issue 
of  private  party  donations  being  channelled  via  political  foundations  have  not  yet  been 
discussed. Measures were taken to mitigate corruption in public procurement, which remains 
a high risk. 

The  media  regulator  functions  independently  and  is  financially  equipped  to  exercise  its 
growing tasks in an effective manner. The decision not to confirm the reduction of the licence 
fee  allowed  the  public  service  broadcaster  to  rely  on  more  financial  resources  in  2025  and 
legislation  to  reform  its  governance  and  funding  system  is  under  discussion  in  the  Senate. 
New  rules  on  media  market  concentrations  were  introduced.  Stakeholders  consider  the 
relevant regulatory framework for the media sector to be effective, although calling for some 
rules  to  be  streamlined  and  for  more  public  initiatives  to  support  the  industry.  The  rules 
regulating  the  flow  of  certain  judicial  information  remain  a  source  of  concern  for 
stakeholders. Although there are specific rules and initiatives for their protection, journalists 
continue to face challenges in the exercise of their profession. The reform of the defamation 
law, certain elements of which raise concerns among journalists and media stakeholders, has 
not moved forward.  

Parliamentary scrutiny of the draft constitutional reform – aimed at enhancing governmental 
stability  and  introducing  the  direct  election  of  the  Prime  Minister  –  is  advancing. 
Stakeholders  reiterated  concerns  over  the  frequent  resort  to  urgency  decrees  by  the 
Government. The Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Senate is discussing a draft law to 
amend the accounting justice code and reform the Court of Auditors.  No concrete measures 
have been undertaken to establish a National Human Rights Institution. A new Security Law 
seeking  to  combat  terrorism  and  organised  crime  and  improve  internal  security  raised 
stakeholder concerns over a possible impact on civic space and the exercise of fundamental 
freedoms. 

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RECOMMENDATIONS 

Overall, concerning the recommendations in the 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy has made: 

•  Some further progress on continuing efforts to further improve the level of digitalisation 

for criminal courts and prosecutors’ offices. 

•  Some  progress  on  adopting  the  pending  legislative  proposal  on  conflicts  of  interest  and 
limited progress on adopting comprehensive rules on lobbying to establish an operational 
lobbying register, including a legislative footprint. 

•  No  progress  yet  in  effectively  and  swiftly  addressing  the  practice  of  channelling 
donations  through  political  foundations  and  associations  and  introduce  single  electronic 
register for party and campaign finance information. 

•  Some progress in  ensuring that rules or mechanisms are in place to provide funding for 
public service media that is appropriate for the realisation of its public service remit and 
to guarantee its independence. 

•  No  further  progress  on  continuing  the  legislative  process  on  the  draft  reform  on 
defamation, the protection of professional secrecy and journalistic sources while avoiding 
any risk of negative impacts on press freedom and ensure it takes into account European 
standards on the protection of journalists. 

•  No  further  progress  in  stepping  up  efforts  to  establish  a  National  Human  Rights 

Institution taking into account the UN Paris Principles.  

On this basis, and considering other developments that took place in the period of reference, 
and  in  addition  to  recalling  the  relevant  commitments  made  under  the  Recovery  and 
Resilience  Plan  and  the  relevant  country-specific  recommendations  under  the  European 
Semester, it is recommended to Italy to: 

•  Complete the digital case management system for criminal courts and prosecution offices. 
•  Adopt the pending legislative proposal on conflicts of interest and step up efforts to adopt 
comprehensive rules on lobbying to establish an operational lobbying register, including a 
legislative footprint.   

•  Step  up  efforts  to  effectively  and  swiftly  address  the  practice  of  channelling  donations 
through political foundations and associations and introduce single electronic register for 
party and campaign finance information.   

•  Advance  with  the  ongoing  legislative  work  to  ensure  that  rules  or  mechanisms  are  in 
place to provide funding for public service media that is appropriate for the realisation of 
its public service remit and to guarantee its independence.  

•  Continue  the  ongoing  legislative  process  on  the  draft  reform  on  defamation,  the 
protection  of  professional  secrecy  and  journalistic  sources  while  avoiding  any  risk  of 
negative impacts on press freedom and ensure it takes into account European standards on 
the protection of journalists. 

•  Step up efforts to  establish a National  Human Rights  Institution  taking into  account  the 

UN Paris Principles.  

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I. 

JUSTICE SYSTEM1 

Independence  

The  level  of  perceived  judicial  independence  in  Italy  is  average  among  the  general 
public  and  continues  to  be  average  among  companies.  Overall,  46%  of  the  general 
population and 48% of companies perceive the level of independence of courts and judges to 
be  ‘fairly  or  very  good’  in  20252.  Among  the  general  public,  this  figure  has  significantly 
increased  in  comparison  with  2024  (36%)  as  well  as  in  comparison  with  2021  (34%).  The 
perceived  judicial  independence  among  companies  has  increased  in  comparison  with  2024 
(42%) and has significantly increased in comparison with 2021 (29%). 

With a comprehensive reform of the justice system now in place, and the adoption of the 
implementing  legislation  necessary  for  it  to  take  full  effect,  the  High  Council  for  the 
Judiciary took forward the tasks entrusted to it under the implementing legislation on 
this reform. The legislative decrees implementing the reform of the justice system adopted 
by  the  Government  in  March  2024  entrusted  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  with  a 
number  of  follow-up  activities,  which  have  been  carried  out  in  recent  months3.  On  25 
the  High  Council  approved  a  directive  concerning  out-of-tenure 
September  2024, 
appointments for magistrates, setting stricter limitations on the possibility for magistrates to 
hold  positions  in  government  or  other  public  administrations4.  On  13  November  2024,  it 
approved  a directive regarding the appraisal of  magistrates’ performance, which,  inter alia, 
establishes the magistrate’s professional file5. This was followed on 3 December 2024 with a 
Code  of  Judicial  Management,  aimed  at  enhancing  transparency  in  the  assignment  of 
managerial  and  semi-managerial  functions  of  judicial  offices6.  The  High  Council  is  also 
working on the implementation of the psychological test for access to the judiciary7. Under 

1  An overview of the institutional framework for all four pillars can be found here. 
2   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figures 50 and 52 and, 2023 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figures 49 and 51. The 
level  of  perceived  judicial  independence  is  categorised  as  follows:  very  low  (below  30%  of  respondents 
perceive judicial independence as fairly good and very good); low (between 30-39%), average (between 40-
59%), high (between 60-75%), very high (above 75%). 

3   See  Legislative  Decree  No.  44,  Art.  8(1).  On  the  reform  of  the  judicial  system,  see  2024  Rule  of  Law 

Report, Italy, pp. 4-5. 

4   Directive  P.13778/2014,  available  here.  The  issue  of  out-of-tenure  magistrates  (magistrates  who 
temporarily  stop  working  in  judicial  offices  to  take  up  positions  in  government  or  other  public 
administrations)  has  traditionally  been  debated  in  Italy,  due  to  the  possible  impact  on  independence  and 
separation  of  powers  (in  the  event  that  magistrates  hold  positions  in  the  executive  power)  and  on  the 
efficiency of the courts (by reducing the number of active magistrates).  Magistratura Indipendente (2025), 
written  input;  Magistratura  Democratica  (2025),  written  input,  p.  4.  In  the  country  visit,  Unicost  did  not 
share these concerns.  

5   Directive  P.21578/2024,  available  here.  The  concerns  on  the  magistrate’s  professional  file,  already 
expressed  by  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  in  its  opinion  of  13  March  2024,  have  been  reiterated 
during  the  country  visit  by  the  judiciary,  especially  by  Magistratura  Democratica  and  Unicost.  The  main 
concern  expressed  by  the  High  Council  is  the  introduction  of  the  notion  of  ‘serious  anomalies’  in  the 
judicial  activity  of  the  magistrate,  which  is  formulated  in  too  generic  terms,  with  the  risk  of  inconsistent 
interpretations  and  of  a  negative  appraisal  of  the  magistrate  also  in  case  of  one  judgment  overturned  at 
subsequent instances. 

6   Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura (2025). Two drafts were brought to the plenary of the High Council, 
which  mainly  differed  on  the  level  of  discretion  left  to  the  High  Council.  Country  visit  Italy,  Area  DG, 
Magistratura Democratica, Unicost, Magistratura Indipendente. In his non-binding opinion, the Minister of 
Justice did not endorse the approved Code (Country visit Italy, Ministry of Justice).  

7   High Council for the Judiciary (2025), written input, pp. 3-6. Doubts on the appropriateness of the psycho-
aptitude test have been reiterated by the judiciary (Country visit Italy, National Association of Magistrates, 

3 

 
 
 
 
the implementing legislation of March 2024, the High School of the Judiciary was given an 
enhanced  role  in  the  phase  of  access  to  the  judiciary,  however  it  noted  that  its  new  tasks 
needed to be accompanied by a corresponding increase in financial and human resources8. 

The  draft  constitutional  reform  separating  careers  of  judges  and  prosecutors  is 
currently  subject  to  Parliamentary  scrutiny,  while  reservations  expressed  by  the 
judiciary  remain.  On  16  January  2025,  the  Chamber  of  Deputies  approved  the  draft 
constitutional reform aimed at separating careers of judges and prosecutors, establishing two 
separate  High  Councils,  one  for  judges  and  one  for  prosecutors,  and  creating  a  High 
Disciplinary  Court  to  which  the  disciplinary  powers  over  ordinary  magistrates  would  be 
transferred  from  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary9.  The  reform  is  now  subject  to  the 
approval of the Senate, and after that it will require a further passage through the Chamber of 
Deputies  and  the  Senate10.  On  8  January  2025,  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  issued  a 
critical  opinion  of  the  reform,  highlighting  challenges  with  the  two  separate  High  Councils 
considering that this would weaken their authority as self-governing bodies of the judiciary 
and  that  the  new  nomination  procedure  (appointment  by  lot)  would  undermine  the 
representation of magistrates in the High Councils, putting at risk the overall organisation of 
the justice system and the autonomy of prosecutors11. Similar concerns were also expressed 
by the First President of the High Court of Cassation and the Prosecutor General at the High 
Court  of  Cassation  in  respect  to  the  High  Disciplinary  Court.  The  National  Association  of 
Magistrates  organised  a  strike  against  the  reform12  and  on  5  March  2025,  it  presented  a 
document with eight proposals on administration of justice13. On their part, the National Bar 
Association and the Union of Italian Criminal Chambers confirmed their support to the draft 
constitutional reform, deemed essential to guarantee the impartiality of judges and effective 
disciplinary  proceedings  against  magistrates14.  Based  on  other  European  legal  systems,  the 
Minister  of  Justice  considers  that  the  separation  of  careers  will  strengthen  the  role  of 
magistrates and will implement the general principle that jurisdiction is exercised through a 
fair trial, where the parties are on equal footing before an impartial judge15, The Government 
notes  that  the  separation  between  the  careers  of  judges  and  prosecutors  exists  in  many 
European legal systems.16 

Magistratura Democratica, Magistratura Indipendente, Area DG, Unicost), and by National Association of 
Constitutionalists and the High School of the Judiciary (written inputs, p. 2 and pp. 8-9, respectively). 
8   High School of the Judiciary (2025), written input,  pp. 3-7.  A further important part of the  reform of the 
judicial system is the establishment of priority criteria for criminal prosecution by Parliament.  This is still 
pending in the Senate (see 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 8). 

9   See 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, pp. 5-7, for a description of the draft reform. In the country visit, the 
Ministry  of  Justice  clarified  that  the  ordinary  legislation  implementing  the  reform  (which  is  essential  to 
assess the reform) will be drafted after parliamentary approval of the reform and that it will be possible to 
appeal to the High Court of Cassation against the decisions of the High Disciplinary Court. 

10   Draft law AS 1353. Since it is a constitutional reform, after Senate’s approval, it must be approved by both 
houses of Parliament a second time without amendments, at least three months after the first approval. 
11   The opinion of the High Council for the Judiciary (available here). In the country visit, concerns regarding 
the  reform  were  raised  by  the  judiciary  (National  Association  of  Magistrates,  Magistratura  Democratica, 
Magistratura  Indipendente,  Area  DG,  Unicost),  the  National  Anti-Mafia  and  Anti-Terrorism  Directorate. 
See also MEDEL (2025), written input, pp. 9-10.  

12   The press release is available here. 
13   A report of the meeting is available here.  
14   Country visit Italy, National Bar Association, Union of Italian Criminal Chambers. 
15   Speech by the Minister of Justice at the inauguration of the judicial year on 14 January 2025, available here. 
16   Italian Government (2025b), additional written contribution for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

4 

 
 
 
The  Constitutional  Court  considered  that  the  comprehensive  reform  of  tax  courts 
represents adequate progress towards a fairer system that complies with constitutional 
principles. The establishment of the Department of Tax Justice was part of a comprehensive 
reform of tax courts to improve the quality of tax jurisdiction. To address concerns about the 
independence of newly established tax courts from the Ministry of Economy and Finance17, it 
was  set  up  as  an  autonomous  body  within  the  Ministry  of  Economy  and  Finance,  distinct 
from  the  Finance  Department  of  the  Ministry.  However,  the  Presidential  Council  of  Tax 
Justice considers that the level of independence of the tax courts has not improved since the 
Department is de facto a branch of the Ministry, the tax courts are still functionally dependent 
on  the  Ministry,  the  role  of  the  Presidential  Council  as  self-governing  body  would  be  still 
limited and most tax judges continue to be honorary, with an insufficient financial package18. 
The  Constitutional  Court  declared  inadmissible  the  questions  raised  by  some  tax  courts 
regarding  the  independence  and  impartiality  of  tax  judges,  considering  that  the  reforms 
introduced  by  Law  No  130  of  2022  represented  adequate  progress  towards  a  fairer  system 
that complies with constitutional principles19. 

Some  stakeholders  reported  on  public  statements  by  politicians  being  critical  of  the 
judiciary. These statements were reportedly made by Government officials and members of 
Parliament,  and  they  related  to  ongoing  inquiries  and  judicial  decisions  mostly  regarding 
migration,  also  targeting  individual  judges  and  prosecutors.  Some  of  the  judges  concerned 
were  put  under  institutional  protection  by  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary20,  or  placed 
under police protection21, also in view of the risks linked to the proceedings they handle. The 
judiciary has expressed concerns about the loss of mutual respect between institutions and the 
effects that these incidents have on citizens’ trust in the judiciary22. According to European 
standards, while criticising judicial decisions is a normal aspect of democratic discourse, the 
executive and legislative powers should avoid criticism that undermines the independence of 
or public confidence in the judiciary23.  

Quality  

The recruitment of magistrates and administrative court staff continues at a good pace 
although  persistent  shortages  remain.  578  new  ordinary  (criminal  and  civil)  magistrates 
took  office  between  July  2024  and  April  202524.  Competitions  for  the  recruitment  of  an 

17   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, pp. 7-8. 
18   Country  visit  Italy,  Presidential  Council  of  Tax  Justice.  Similar  concerns  have  been  expressed  by  the 
National  Bar  Association  (see  speech  of  the  representative  of  the  Bar  at  the  opening  ceremony  of  the 
judicial tax year 2025 on 12 March 2025, available here). 

19   Judgment of the Constitutional Court, No. 204.. See also Department of Justice (written input, p. 2). 
20   In  the  period  July  2024-February  2025,  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  opened  five  proceedings  to 

protect independence of judges (written input, p. 16). 

21   As of February 2025, overall (not only in relation to issues set out in this paragraph), 273 magistrates were 

under police protection. 

22   Country visit Italy, High Court of Cassation, Prosecution Service at the High Court of Cassation, National 
Association of Magistrates, Area DG, Magistratura Democratica, Unicost. See also MEDEL (2025), written 
input, p. 11. In her speech at the opening ceremony of the judicial year 2025, the First President of the High 
Court of Cassation recalled the need of “a climate of mutual respect between the institutions of the State… 
A true pact for the rule of law able to fuel the confidence of citizens towards all the institutions that have 
been given the role of exercising sovereign functions by the fundamental Charter”. 

23   Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (2010), Recommendation CM/Rec(2010)12, para. 18. See 

also Venice Commission (2013), paras. 21-22. 

24   These magistrates are the winners of the competition launched in 2021  and 2022. They will become fully 

operational after a 12-month traineeship period. Italian Government (2025a), written input, p. 14. 

5 

 
 
 
additional 1 050 ordinary magistrates are expected to be completed between the end of 2025 
and 202625. This extensive recruitment plan will make it possible to cope with the significant 
shortages  of  ordinary  magistrates,  allowing  to  close  the  overall  shortage  which  is  now  at 
17%26.  From  July  2024  to  April  2025,  849  members  of  the  administrative  staff  of  the 
ordinary  courts  took  office,  but  a  shortage  rate  of  around  37%  remains;  four  competitions 
were launched in 2024 and should be completed by the end of 202527. The vacancies at the 
High  Court  of  Cassation  are  at  around  20%  of  the  judicial  posts  (although  in  recent  year 
competitions  have  been  launched  more  regularly  than  in  the  past)  and  33%  of  the 
administrative  staff28.  As  concerns  administrative  justice,  early  2025,  there  was  an  overall 
shortage  of  13%  of  judges  (but  competitions  for 53  posts  are  to  be  launched  by  the  end  of 
2025) and of around 23% of administrative staff 29. As concerns tax justice, a competition for 
146  judges  launched  in  2024  is  expected  to  be  completed  by  the  end  of  2025  and  further 
competitions  will  be  launched  in  the  next  years,  with  a  view  to  implement  the  planned 
replacement of honorary judges with  professional  judges; a shortage  of around 26% affects 
the administrative staff, but 41 additional clerks should be recruited by the end of 202530. As 
concerns the Court of Auditors, the overall estimated personnel shortage is around 23%31: 30 
new magistrates were recruited in the last year, leading to a vacancy rate of around 15%, and 
competitions for the appointment of new magistrates are regularly held32; 29 administrative 
staff units were hired. Finally, the Constitutional Court returned to full strength in February 
2025, with  the appointment  of four judges by Parliament  (after a deadlock since December 
2023);  in  the  last  year,  36  members  of  the  administrative  staff  were  recruited33.  While 
acknowledging  the  progress  made  in  recent  years,  it  is  a  well-established  view  among 
stakeholders  that  the  filling  of  judicial  and  administrative  vacancies  in  the  courts  is  a 
prerequisite to make the Italian justice system more efficient34. 

Stakeholders reiterated the positive impact of the Clerks for the Office of the Trial on 
the management of court proceedings, although the number of those in office continued 
to  decrease.  As  part  of  the  Recovery  and  Resilience  Plan,  Italy  introduced  Clerks  for  the 
Office of the Trial (Addetti all’Ufficio del Processo), tailor-made to the size and the needs of 
each court and aimed to increase their productivity. In particular, the Clerks help magistrates 
manage  cases,  prepare  hearings  and  draft  judgements.35.  Stakeholders  reiterated  that  the 
Clerks helped increase efficiency and quality of the justice system, effectively contributing to 
the reduction of the length of proceedings36. Despite the efforts of the authorities (including 
various competitions held in 2024), a high resignation rate of Clerks persisted in the last year, 

25   Italian Government (2025a), written input, pp. 14-15. The competitions were launched in 2023 and 2024. 
26   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input. In 14 districts (out of 29), the shortage rate exceeds 50%. 
27   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex 3; Italian Government (2025a), written input, pp. 15-20. 
28   Country visit Italy, High Court of Cassation and Prosecution Service at the High Court of Cassation. 
29   Council of State (2025), written input, pp. 11-17. 
30   Department for Tax Justice (2025), written input, pp. 4, 9, 10. 
31   Court of Auditors (2025), written input. 
32   Court of Auditors and Prosecution Service at the Court of Auditors (2025), written input, p. 5. 
33   Constitutional Court (2025), written input. 
34   National Bar Association (2025), written input, p. 13.  Country visit Italy, Area DG, Unicost, Magistratura 

Indipendente, Magistratura Democratica. 

35   Investment 1.8 of the Italian Recovery and Resilience Facility. Clerks for the Office of the Trial have been 

hired by ordinary courts and administrative courts. 

36   Italian  Government  (2025a),  written  input,  p.  26.  Country  visit  Italy,  Council  of  State,  Magistratura 
Democratica,  Magistratura  Indipendente.  Area  DG  pointed  out  that  the  Clerks  for  the  Office  of  the  Trial 
could  also  have  been  envisaged  for  prosecution  offices  (not  only  for  judicial  ones,  as  envisaged  in  the 
RRF). 

6 

 
 
 
leading to a decrease of Clerks in office (from July 2024 to January 2025, 186 fewer Clerks 
in ordinary courts and 26 in administrative courts)37. 

There has been some further progress on the recommendation to improve digitalisation 
of  criminal  courts  and  prosecutors’  offices38.  With  the  other  branches  of  justice  already 
fully digitalised39, Italy still has only limited digital solutions in place to conduct and follow 
court proceedings in criminal cases40. The use of a case management system – the APP – has 
been  made  mandatory  in  all  criminal  courts  and  prosecutors’  offices  as  of  1  January  2025, 
with an additional set of acts to be carried out exclusively in digital form as of 31 March and 
the  goal  to  transition  to  fully  digitalised  case-management  by  the  end  of  202541.  However, 
owing to system-related shortcomings, 87 criminal courts and prosecutors’ offices have opted 
to  derogate  from  the  obligation  and  postponed  the  effective  launch  of  the  APP42.  In  the 
second  half  of  2024,  the  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  set  up  a  special  taskforce  and  the 
Ministry of Justice conducted several visits to the courts to collect users’ views and feedback, 
with  a view to  identify the solutions  to  have the  entire first instance trial  digitalised by the 
end  of  202543.  Despite  some  setbacks,  some  further  progress  has  been  made  on  the 
recommendation in the 2024 Rule of Law Report. 

Efficiency  

Despite  some  improvement  to  the  disposition  time,  the  length  of  judicial  proceedings 
remains  a  serious  issue.  In  2023,  the  disposition  time  of  civil  and  commercial  cases 
decreased in all three instances (by 29 days in first, by 50 days in second and by 60 days in 
third  instance,  compared  to  2022),  but  remained  the  lengthiest  in  the  EU,  as  it  still  took 
around 6 years to resolve such cases44. In 2023, the disposition time for first instance criminal 
cases  significantly  decreased  to  281  days  (355  in  2022)45.  Italy  remains  under  enhanced 
supervision of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers as regards the length of civil 
and  criminal  proceedings46.  Also,  administrative  and 
recorded  slight 

justice 

tax 

37   Italian Government (2025a), written input, p. 26.  
38   The 2024 Rule of Law Report recommended to Italy to ‘[c]ontinue efforts to further improve the level of 

digitalisation for criminal courts and prosecutors’ offices”. 

39   Lastly, with the completion of the digitalisation process of tax justice, pursuant to the timeline established 

under Legislative Decree 30 December 2023, No. 220 and the launch of the platform Pro.Di.Gi.T. 

40   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 48. 
41   Applicativo del Processo Penale, see Decree of the Ministry of Justice No. 206/2024. 
42   Technical  challenges  were  confirmed  by  the  Italian  government  (2025,  written  input,  p.  24).  The  main 
problems  concern  the  speed  of  the  platform,  the  high  frequency  of  error  messages,  restricted  access  to 
judicial  acts  and  lack  of  correspondence  between  the  types  of  judicial  acts  provided  for  in  the  Code  of 
Criminal Procedure and those available on the platform. Further difficulties would stem from the fact that 
the  equipment  of  the  Courts  is  obsolete,  the  Internet  connections  available  to  the  Courts  is  often 
insufficiently  reliable  as  to  allow  for  full  digitisation  and  the  administrative  staff  has  received  sufficient 
training  for  the  use  of  the  platform.  Area  DG,  Magistratura  Democratica,  Magistratura  indipendente, 
Unicost (2025), written input. Country visit Italy, Union of Italian Criminal Chambers. 

43   Country  visit  Italy,  Minister  of  Justice.  High  Council  for  the  Judiciary  (2025),  written  input,  p.  15. 
However,  the  level  of  digitalisation  of  the  other  jurisdictions  is  very  good:  civil,  tax,  administrative  and 
accounting 

 justice systems are completely digitalised. Country visit Italy, Minister of Justice, Department of Tax Justice, 

Council of State, Court of Auditors, High Court of Cassation 

44   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figures 6-7. In 2023, the disposition time was 511 days in first instance (540 
days in 2022), 703 days in second instance (753 days in 2022), 1 003 days in third instance (1 063 in days 
in 2022).  

45   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex I. 
46   Council of Europe, Table of cases under enhanced supervision of the Committee of Ministers. 

7 

 
 
 
improvements: in 2023, the time needed to resolve administrative cases in all instances fell 
by 13 days (976 against 989 in 2022)47 and for tax justice by 96 days (1 071 against 1 167 in 
2022)48.  In  2023,  Italy  was  ordered  to  pay  a  total  of  EUR 88 376 682.61  in  compensation, 
following  claims  brought  by  private  individuals,  for  the  excessive  duration  of  judicial 
proceedings49. 

The positive trend of reducing the case backlog  continues. In 2023, the rate of resolving 
judicial cases improved for all jurisdictions, confirming the positive trend of previous years. 
In particular, as concerns civil and commercial cases, the clearance rate was equal to 110% 
and the number of pending cases decreased by 69 849 cases (from 2 027 478 cases in 2022 to 
1 957 629  in  2023)  in  first  instance50.  For  criminal  cases,  the  clearance  rate  was  equal  to 
111% and the number of pending cases decreased by 174 078 cases (from 1 118 090 cases in 
2022  to  944 012  in  2023)51.  For  administrative  cases  (all  instances),  the  clearance  rate  was 
equal to 123% and the number of pending cases decreased by approx. 10%52. For tax cases, at 
last instance the clearance rate was 113% and the number of pending  cases decreased  by 4 
012  cases  (45 919  in  2022,  41 907  in  2023)53.  As  regards  audit  justice,  the  cases  clearance 
rate in 2024 was 98%54.  

The reform of the mediation system is intended to improve the efficiency of the justice 
system and its impact will need to be assessed over time. On 25 January 2025, a revision 
of  the  rules  on  mediation  and  assisted  negotiation  came  into  force,  having  the  objective  of 
further  encouraging  the  use  of  these  tools  and  reducing  the  number  of  legal  proceedings55. 
This revision intervenes in a context of already extended use of mediation, as reformed in last 
years, with an increase of 11% in mediated cases in 2023 compared to 2022, even though the 
overall rate of success of mediation in 2023 was equal to 15 %56.  

II. 

ANTI-CORRUPTION FRAMEWORK  

The  perception  among  experts,  citizens  and  business  executives  is  that  the  level  of 
corruption  in  the  public  sector  remains  relatively  high.  In  the  2025  Corruption 
Perceptions Index by Transparency International, Italy scores 54/10057 and ranks 19th in the 

47   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 9. In 2023 there was a slight increase in the  disposition  time  of  first 
instance cases, which – as clarified in the country visit by the Council of State – was due to contingencies. 
This  slight  increase  was  more  than  offset  by  the  reduction  of  the  disposition  time  in  second  instance.  In 
September 2024,  the  Council  of  Europe’s  Committee  of Ministers  ended  its  supervision  on  the  excessive 
length of administrative proceedings see link. 

48   Department of Tax Justice (2025), written input, p. 8. 
49   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input. 
50   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex II. 
51   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex I. 
52   Council of State (2025), written input, pp. 2-6. 2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figures 8, 9, 12, 16. 
53   Court of Cassation (2025), written input. 
54   Court of Auditors (2025), written input. 
55   Legislative  Decree  No.  216  of  27  December  2024,  laying  down  supplementary  and  corrective  rules  to 
Legislative Decree No 149 of 10 October 2022 on civil and commercial mediation and assisted negotiation. 
It focuses inter alia on the regulation of electronic means of participation to mediation, on requirements of 
mediation bodies, on the length of the mediation procedure, etc. 

56   Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex 4, p. 3. 
57   The level of perceived corruption is categorized as follows: low (above 79); relatively low (between 79-60), 

relatively high (between 59- 50), high (below 50). 

8 

 
 
 
EU and 52th globally. This perception has been relatively stable over the past five years58. The 
2025  Special  Eurobarometer  on  Corruption  shows  that  82%  of  respondents  consider 
corruption  widespread  in  their  country  (EU  average  69%)  and  41%  of  respondents  feel 
personally  affected  by  corruption  in  their  daily  lives  (EU  average  30%).  As  regards 
businesses, 81% of companies consider that corruption is widespread (EU average 63%) and 
44% consider that corruption is a problem when doing business (EU average 35%). 43% of 
respondents find that there are enough successful prosecutions to deter people from  corrupt 
practices  (EU  average  36%),  while  38%  of  companies  believe  that  people  and  businesses 
caught for bribing a senior official are appropriately punished (EU average 33%)59. 

The National Anti-Corruption Plan was updated, and the newly adopted action plan for 
open  Government  includes  integrity  actions.  In  January  2025,  the  National  Anti-
Corruption  Authority  (ANAC)  approved  the  update  to  the  National  Anti-Corruption  Plan 
(NAP)60,  with  new  guidelines  on  simplified  procedures  to  prevent  corruption-risks  in  small 
municipalities61. The 6th National Action Plan for Open Government (adopted by the Ministry 
of  Public  Administration  in  July  2024)  includes  a  commitment  to  improve  integrity  in  the 
public  administration,  and  a  guide  on  the  use  of  indicators  and  open  data  for  preventing 
corruption in public procurement62.  

The  law  abrogating  the  offence  of  abuse  of  public  office  was  declared  to  be  in 
compliance with the Constitution. In August 2024, the law abrogating the offence of abuse 
of public office, and which limits the scope of the offence of trading in influence, which had 
been tabled at the request of a majority of local authorities, entered into force. This law had 
raised  some  concerns,  including  from  ANAC63.  The  UN  Convention  against  Corruption 
encourages  Member  States  to  consider  the  criminalisation  of  abuse  of  office  and  trading  in 
influence  which  can  be  important  tools  for  law  enforcement  and  prosecution  to  fight 
corruption64. The Constitutional Court pronounced itself on the Law of 2024 abrogating the 
abuse of office based on several requests for review, and in May 2025 it declared that the law 
does  not  breach  the  Constitution  and  is  compliant  with  the  UN  Convention  against 
Corruption65. A draft law to further limit the duration of wiretapping, to address its frequent 

58   In 2020, the score was 53, while, in 2024, the score is 54. The score significantly increases/decreases when 
it  changes  more  than  five  points;  improves/deteriorates  (changes  between  4-5  points);  is  relatively  stable 
(changes from 1-3 points) in the last five years. 

59   Data from Special Eurobarometer [561] (2025) and Flash Eurobarometer [557] (2025). 
60   The consultation closed in January 2025.  
61    Such  as  municipalities  of  less  than  5 000  inhabitants  or  with  less  than  50  employees.  ANAC  (2025a).  In 
September  2024,  ANAC  signed  a  memorandum  of  understanding  with  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior,  the 
Minister for Public Administration and the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI), aimed at 
promoting anti-corruption measures in small public administrations. ANAC (2025), written input, p.1. 

62   National Action Plan for Open Government (2024). 
63   ANAC (2024e). Sistema Penale (2023).  
64   See 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 15. Abuse of public office and trading in influence are part of the 
United  Nations  Convention  against  Corruption  and  trading  in  influence  is  part  of  the  Criminal  law 
Convention against corruption of the Council of Europe.  The respective Article 19 in the UN Convention 
against  Corruption  reads  as  follows:  “Each  State  Party  shall  consider  adopting  such  legislative  and  other 
measures as may be necessary to establish as a criminal offence, when committed intentionally, the abuse of 
functions  or  position,  that  is,  the  performance  of  or  failure  to  perform  an  act,  in  violation  of  laws,  by  a 
public official in the discharge of his or her functions, for the purpose of obtaining an undue advantage for 
himself  or  herself  or  for  another  person  or  entity”.  In  its  proposal  for  an  Anti-Corruption  Directive,  the 
Commission proposed to criminalise these offences at Union level, COM(2023) 234 final, 3.5.2023.  

65   The decision was published in a communication from 8 May 2025 by the Constitutional Court. 

9 

 
 
 
use  beyond  the  needs  of  an  investigation,  is  currently  pending  at  the  Parliament66.  Another 
draft law to reduce the time available to conduct proceedings for criminal offences, including 
on corruption cases, remains before the Senate67.    

The number of convictions against individuals and legal persons for corruption offences 
decreased. From 1 668 convictions for individuals  and 30 for legal  persons in  2023 to  969 
and  18  respectively  in  202468,  but  this  might  partly  be  explained  by  a  backlog  in  the 
collection of data69. The high rate of convictions suspended (67% in 2024) remained similar 
to previous years70. The Guardia di Finanza carried out investigations for corruption used by 
a criminal organisation based in several jurisdictions, and operating in the education sector71, 
and  law  enforcement  authorities  performed  searches  against  six  public  officers  suspect  of 
corruption in a public contract. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) investigated 
51 corruption cases in 202472. The Ultimate Beneficial Ownership Register was suspended73, 
and  the  measures  countering  foreign  bribery  raised  a  few  concerns74.  The  National  Anti-
mafia  and  Anti-terrorism  Directorate  recruited 
three  additional  deputy  prosecutors 
(previously there was one), to facilitate coordinating the fight to organised crime, including 
corruption75. 

ANAC  strengthened  its  human  resources,  and  it  issued  guidelines  on  revolving  doors, 
with  those  on  whistleblowing  under  preparation.  Last  year,  ANAC  increased  its  staff76 
and,  together  with  the  National  School  of  Administration,  continued  to  deliver  corruption 
prevention training to public officers77. In 2024, ANAC saw a 40% increase in its monitoring 
activities compared to 2023, but a similar decrease (about -43%) in the sanctioning activity, 
while  it  examined  200  files  concerning  conflicts  of  interests78.  In  2024,  ANAC  issued  a 

66   The  bill  sets  a  stricter  45-days  limit  for  wiretapping,  unless  other  specific  and  concrete  elements  arise. 

(Senate, AC 2084). 

67   Country visit Italy, Ministry of Justice. 
68   In 2024, there were 969 convictions for individuals and 18 for legal persons, while in 2023 there were 1668 
and 30 respectively. For individuals in 2024, 75 cases were sanctioned with financial penalties; 722 cases 
with custodial sentences; and 6 cases with both custodial and financial penalty (in 2023 the cases were 66, 1 
295 and 79, respectively). Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex 2. 

69   The 2024 Rule of Law Report indicated that there were 1361 convictions for individuals in 2023. The data 
provided  by  the  Italian  authorities  for  this  year’s  report  indicated  that  there  were  1668  convictions  for 
individuals in 2023. These differences can be explained by a backlog in the supply of data. While this might 
also be the case for the data for 2024, it is unlikely that the final number of convictions in 2024 will be as 
high as the number reported in 2023.  

70   In  2024,  there  were  654  convictions  suspended,  compared  to  1 090  in  2023  and  1 069  in  2022  (i.e. 
respectively 65% and 70% of the total convictions). Ministry of Justice (2025), written input, Annex 2. 

71   Guardia di Finanza (2025), written input, p. 9-10. 
72   EPPO (2025), written input, pp. 30-32. This number accounts for almost 2% of the EPPO’s total number of 

cases in Italy.  

73   The suspension was decided pending the decision from the Court of Justice of the EU to a question filed by 

the Council of State Country visit Italy, Ministry of Justice. 

74   OECD  indicated  that  7  previous  recommendations  were  only  partially  implemented  and  other  23 

recommendations remained not implemented. OECD (2024). 

75   In  particular,  one  procuratore  aggiunto  and  two  sostituti  procuratori.  Country  visit  Italy,  Anti-Mafia 

Investigative Directorate. Italy (2025), written input, p. 13. 

76   ANAC  hired  4  administrative  assistants  and  launched  a  procedure  to recruit 4  managers,  with  a  target  of 

400 staff, from the current 378. ANAC (2024d), p. 347. ANAC (2025), written input, pp. 16-17. 

77   Training  on  anti-corruption,  transparency  and  ethics  in  public  administration,  with  a  specific  degree  in 

public procurement integrity. SNA (2025), written input, p. 3. 

78   For  2024,  the  request  for  ANAC  advice  remained  stable  compared  to  the  previous  year  (around  5  000 
requests per year). ANAC opened of a total of 642 files, of which 450 were supervisory and 61 sanctioning, 

10 

 
 
 
 
decision  with  guidelines  on  ‘revolving  doors’,  with  clarifications  on  its  monitoring  and 
sanctioning  powers,  and  to  support  public  administrations  redress  these  cases;  ANAC  also 
plans to deliver specific training to integrity officers of public institutions79. Annual plans for 
anti-corruption by different institutions are collected digitally and verified by ANAC (which 
issued  36  sanctions  in  2024  against  public  institutions  failing  to  adopt  their  annual  anti-
corruption  strategy)80.  In  2024,  ANAC  received  an  increased  number  of  whistleblowers’ 
reports for retaliation measures (+33% compared to 2023)81, and it plans to issue guidelines 
on  the  establishment  of  internal  reporting  channels  by  202582.  In  2024,  271  indictment 
requests  for  financial  crimes  against  the  public  administration  (for  a  value  of  around  EUR 
277  million)  where  filed  in  front  of  the  Court  of  Auditors,  which  issued  177  convictions 
(worth  around  EUR  41  million)83.  The  draft  law  to  reform  the  Court  of  Auditors  was 
presented at the initiative of the Parliament and is currently being discussed in the Senate and 
is receiving a broad support among central and local authorities. Its aim is to strengthen the 
system of preventive control by the Court of Auditors over acts of the administration so that 
they  are  safeguarded  from  subsequent  investigations.  Nevertheless,  the  Court  of  Auditors 
raised some concerns linked to effectively combating corruption due, amongst others, to what 
it considers to be a broader list of exemptions in relation to which it could not intervene84. 

Actions to improve the integrity of police forces and training for judges were launched. 
Concerns  were  raised  regarding  the  completeness  of  the  integrity  measures  for  high-level 
officials.  Suggestions  to  improve  the  integrity  measures  applicable  to  police  forces85,  were 
taken  forward  by  them86.  The  High  School  of  the  Judiciary  delivered  training  (both  on  the 
integrity for members of the judiciary, and on methodologies to prosecute corruption cases)87. 

There has been some progress on the recommendation to adopt comprehensive rules on 
conflict  of  interest88.  Italy  is  still  lacking  comprehensive  rules  on  conflicts  of  interest  for 
political office holders, including members of Parliament89. In October 2024, ANAC issued 

compared to 621 files opened in 2023. ANAC (2025), written  input, p. 4-8. ANAC indicated the need to 
better regulate conflicts of interest. ANAC (2025b). 

79   ANAC (2024a). Country visit Italy, ANAC. 
80   ANAC (2025), written input, p. 14. 
81   About 1 350  reports were filed in 2024;  387 reports were considered inadmissible, 102 were  rejected, 81 
remained  under  investigation,  and  780  received  a  preliminary  examination.  Italian  Government  (2025a), 
written input, p. 36. 

82   Country visit Italy, ANAC.  
83   Court of Auditors (2025), written input, p. 6. 
84   Court of Auditors (2025), written input, pp. 1-2. 
85   GRECO  called  for  equal  measures  to  prevent  on  conflicts  of  interest  and  financial  disclosure,  code  of 
conduct  awareness-raising,  guidance  on  gifts,  lobbying,  and  proper  sanctions,  for  all  persons  with  top 
executive  functions.  GRECO  considers  that  the  State  Police,  the  Carabinieri  and  the  Guardia  di  Finanza, 
could benefit from regular integrity checks and training on whistleblower protection. GRECO (2024a).  
86   The Guardia di Finanza plans to update its rules on conflicts of interest; the Ministry of Interior launched a 
procedure to update the code of conduct of its employees, including police officers, while the Ministry of 
Justice  established  a  working  group  to  discuss  and  respond  to  the  concerns  on  integrity  within  the 
Carabinieri.  Ministry  of  Interior  and  Ministry  of  Justice  (2025),  written  input,  p.  9  and  Annex I, 
respectively. Country visit Italy, Guardia di Finanza.  

87   Training included a specific focus on foreign bribery, and criminal liability of corporations. High School of 
the Judiciary (2025), written contribution. ANSA (2024) and Il Fatto Quotidiano (2024a) (2024b) Reuters 
(2024). 

88   The  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report  recommended  Italy  to  ‘[…]  adopt  the  pending  legislative  proposal  on 

conflicts of interest’. 

89   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 18. 

11 

 
 
 
an analytical report on conflicts of interests, which expressed concerns on the consistency of 
the  measures  for  asset  declarations  applied  to  top  ministerial  officials,  their  staff  members 
and  advisers,  and  on  the  usability  of  the  published  declarations  filed  by  members  of 
Parliament90.  A  draft  law  on  conflicts  of  interest91  and  to  improve  integrity  measures  for 
members  of  Parliament92  remains  pending.  The  budget  law  for  2025  includes  some 
conditional restrictions for Members of Parliament and the Government, as well as presidents 
of regions, to hold paid positions in companies based outside the EU93. Therefore, there has 
been some progress on the implementation of the recommendation made in previous years.  

There  has  been  limited  progress  on  the  recommendation  on  adopting  comprehensive 
lobbying rules94. The lack of a comprehensive regulation of lobbying activities continues to 
be  perceived  as  one  of  the  main  shortcomings  of  the  national  integrity  system95.  The 
president  of  ANAC  indicated  before  Parliament  the  importance  of  envisaging  a  national 
regulation  on  lobbying,  including  a  publicly  accessible  register  of  lobbyists96.  In  2024, 
hearings of experts took place on the draft laws on lobbying tabled at the two chambers97, but 
the legislative process has not advanced, including the issue of a ‘legislative footprint’98. The 
Senate99  has  not  adopted  a  register  of  lobbyists  and  concerns  were  raised  on  the  lobbying 
measures  applicable  to  high-level  officials100.  At  the  same  time,  three  Ministries  have 
voluntarily  introduced  registers  of  lobbyists  and  codes  of  conduct  that  lobbyists  must  sign. 
Therefore,  limited  progress  has  been  made  to  implement  the  recommendation  made  in 
previous years.  

There  has  been  no  progress  yet  in  relation  to  the  financing  of  political  parties  and 
campaigns by donations through political foundations and associations since draft laws 
are still under parliamentary scrutiny101. The persistent practice of private party donations 
could  impede  public  accountability  and  may  even  result  in  private  donors  exerting 
disproportionate  influence  on  the  political  agenda  depending  on  the  size  of  their 

90   ANAC  (2025),  written  input,  Annex  6  and  GRECO  (2024a)  p.  28.  The  asset  declarations  of  MPs  are 
publicly  available  on  the  individual  pages  of parliamentarians,  but  they  are  in  pdf  form  and  handwritten, 
which makes it difficult to read and compare. Transparency International (2024).  

91   After approval by the Chamber of Deputies on 28 May 2024, the draft law on conflicts of interest remains 
pending at the Senate. The draft law includes measures for different office holders and prohibits the receipt 
of payments from foreign states. See also GRECO (2024b). 

92   The  draft  law  aims  to  amend  and  strengthen  the  Chamber  of  Deputies’  Rules  of  Procedure  by  codifying 
certain key transparency provisions of the 2016 Code of Conduct and increasing the sanctions for breaches. 
93   As  per  Law  207/2024,  the  external  assignment  can  be  authorised  for  annual  remuneration  up-to  EUR 

100 000.  

94   The  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report  recommended  Italy  to  ‘[…]  adopt  comprehensive  rules  on  lobbying  to 

establish an operational lobbying register, including a legislative footprint’. 
95   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 19. Country visit Italy, The Good Lobby. 
96   Italian Government (2025a), written input, p. 33. 
97   Under the current legislature starting in October 2022, five draft laws have been presented to the Chamber 
of Deputies and five to the Senate, but the legislative debate has not yet started. So far, only expert hearings 
took place, one in August and a second one in September 2024.  2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p.19-20. 
Chamber  of  Deputies  (2025a).  Chamber  of  Deputies  (2025b).  NGOs  remain  concerned about  the  lack  of 
legislation on lobbying. Civil Liberties Union for Europe (2025). 

98   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 19. 
99   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 19.  
100   GRECO called for equal measures lobbying, for all persons with top executive functions. GRECO (2024a) 

p. 20. 

101   The  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report  recommended  to  Italy  to  “Effectively  and  swiftly  address  the  practice  of 
channeling donations through political foundations and associations and introduce single electronic register 
for party and campaign finance information”.  

12 

 
 
 
contributions102. The draft laws tabled in both Chambers of Parliament to address this long-
standing  issue  have  not  been  discussed  yet103,  neither  has  the  draft  law  to  increase  the 
autonomy  of  the  Committee  for  Transparency  and  Control  of  Political  Parties  and  Political 
Movements104. For 2024, the Committee assessed 76 budgets from political parties (52 were 
considered  compliant,  and  24  remained  to  review),  and  received  10  budgets  from  political 
associations  and  foundations  (which  remain  under  review)105.  The  human  and  financial 
resources of the Committee  have recently been  increased, responding to  a request  from  the 
Committee106.  Since  the  draft  laws  are  still  pending  in  both  Chambers,  there  has  been  no 
progress yet regarding the implementation of the recommendations made in previous years. 

Measures  were  taken  to  mitigate  corruption  in  public  procurement,  which  remains  a 
high risk area. The Flash Eurobarometer on Businesses’ attitudes towards corruption in the 
EU  shows  that  33%  of  companies  in  Italy  (EU  average  25%)  think  that  corruption  has 
prevented them from winning a public tender or a public procurement contract in practice in 
the  last  three  years107.  81%  of  companies  perceive  the  level  of  independence  of  the  public 
procurement  review  body  (Regional  Administrative  Tribunals  and  the  Council  of  State)  as 
very  or  fairly  good108.  The  Single  Market  and  Competitiveness  Scoreboard  on  access  to 
public  procurement  in  Italy  reports  37%  of  single  bids  for  2023  (EU  average  29%).  The 
public  procurement  sector  continues  to  be  exposed  to  attempts  of  infiltration  by  organised 
crime,  including  through  corruption109.  In  2024,  98%  of  public  contracts  were  allocated 
through  direct  allocation110.  Public  procurement  is  digitalised  through  an  interinstitutional 
platform, which helps counter attempts of infiltration and corruption, however the technical 
interoperability,  and  qualification  of  the  staff,  remain  a  challenge111.  In  2024,  the  code  of 
public procurement was updated by the Government112. ANAC issued guidelines and reports 
on risk of corruption in public procurement, including those used by local medical entities113, 
and  it  extended  the  use  of  its  platform  for  public  contracts114,  among  some  concerns  on 
transparency115.  In  2025,  ANAC,  the  Guardia  di  Finanza  and  the  Carabinieri  renewed 
collaboration to prevent corruption in public contracts116. 

102   2024  Rule  of  Law  Report,  Italy.  Italy  prohibits  direct  public  funding  to  political  parties,  including  for 
political  campaigns.  Since  2014,  political  parties  are  required  to  finance  themselves  almost  exclusively 
through private donations from individual donors or legal entities.  
103   Country visit Italy, Ministry of Justice. 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy. 
104   Draft law A.S. 552. 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 21. 
105   Committee for Transparency and Control of Political Parties and Political Movements (2024).  
106  Decree-Law No. 25 of 14 March 2025. 
107   Flash  Eurobarometer  557  on  Businesses’  attitudes  towards  corruption  in  the  EU  (2025).  This  is  8 

percentage points above the EU average. 
108   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 59. 
109   Ministry of Interior (2025), written input, p. 10. 
110   ANAC (2025b). 
111   ANAC (2025), written input, p.14. 
112   Legislative decree 209. 
113   ANAC (2024c, 2024f and 2025), written input, Annexes 1-5. 
114   ANAC (2024b). Italian Government (2025a), written input, p. 34. 
115   In  September  2024,  some  NGOs  (including  the  Osservatorio  Civico  PNRR,  Open  Polis  and  Dati  bene 
commune,  which  includes  around  300  civic  associations)  raised  concerns  on  the  alleged  lack  of 
transparency on the implementation of contracts, including those related to the Italian RRP. 

116   Country  visit  Italy,  ANAC  and  Guardia  di  Finanza.  Guardia  di  Finanza  delivered  training  on  digital 
investigative  tools  to  its  officers.  Guardia  di  Finanza  (2025),  written  input,  pp.  1-12.  Ministry  of  Interior 
(2025), written input, Annex I. 

13 

 
 
 
III.  MEDIA PLURALISM AND MEDIA FREEDOM 

The media regulator is well resourced and exercises its functions independently. A well 
established and functional framework ensures that the Communication Regulatory Authority 
(AGCOM)  carries  out  its  functions  independently117.  Its  budgetary  independence  is 
guaranteed through a self-financing system based on contributions that AGCOM directly and 
autonomously collects from the entities falling under its regulatory remit. This self-financing 
system provides for a level of resources that AGCOM considers adequate to effectively carry 
out its extensive, and growing, regulatory competences, ranging from telecommunication and 
postal  services  to  audiovisual  media  services  and  online  platforms118.  In  this  respect, 
AGCOM  is  a  proactive  regulator  and  plays  a  crucial  role  in  the  Italian  media  regulatory 
environment119.  

There has been some progress on the recommendation related to the funding of public 
service media120. RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana is the media service broadcaster currently 
entrusted with the public service mission in Italy. RAI is required to provide an independent, 
impartial  and  pluralistic  offering,  in  line  with  the  service  contract  concluded  between  the 
broadcaster  and  the  Government,  and  regulating  the  modalities  for  the  fulfilment  of  RAI’s 
public service mission. RAI’s commitment towards the provision of accurate and  pluralistic 
information  is  reflected  in  internal  policies  which  are  aimed  at  guaranteeing  editorial 
independence  and  integrity  and  include  legal  assistance  for  RAI’s  journalists  and  staff 
targeted by lawsuits related to their reporting activities121. According to the Government, the 
pluralism of the public service media system is reflected by RAI’s programmes also featuring 
numerous  journalistic  investigations  on  members  of  the  Government  and  its  parliamentary 
majority 122. At the same time, there are concerns among some stakeholders related to RAI’s 
vulnerability  to  risks  of  undue  interference123  under  the  current  governance  and  funding 
frameworks,  and  the  lack  of  legislative  progress  to  address  these  issues124.  Six  different 
legislative proposals to reform RAI were presented in the Senate in October 2024. Their aim 
is  to  reform  the  current  governance  system,  to  foster  RAI’s  independence  and  reduce  the 
involvement  of  the  Government  in  the  appointment  procedures.  The  competent  Senate 
committee  is  currently  working  on  a  draft  proposal  consolidating  these  proposals  and 
parliamentary discussions in this respect started in May 2025125. Some stakeholders indicated 

117   2024  Rule  of  Law  Report,  Italy,  p.  24;  the  MPM  2025  considers  the  independence  and  effectiveness  of 
national regulatory authorities to be at low risk, in view of the fact that AGCOM operates in a substantial 
degree  of  autonomy  and  is  functionally  autonomous  and  independent  in  the  exercise  of  its  regulatory 
competences, 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, pp. 18-19. 

118   Country visit Italy, AGCOM.  
119   Country visit Italy, FIEG and Confindustria; Media Pluralism Monitor(2024), p. 17. 
120   The  2024 Rule of Law Report recommended to Italy to “Ensure that  rules or mechanisms are in place to 
provide funding for public service media that is appropriate for the realisation of its public service remit and 
to guarantee its independence”. 
121   RAI (2025), written input, pp. 4-7. 
122  Italian Government (2025b), p.3. 
123   The  MPM  2025  considers  the  independence  of  public  service  media  to  be  at  high  risk  in  view  of  the 
challenges posed by existing legal shortcomings and subsequent practices, 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, 
p.5, p.11, p.29 and pp. 35-36. 

124   FNSI,  Ordine  dei  Giornalisti,  OBCT,  Civil  Liberties  Union  for  Europe  (2025),  written  inputs  p.12,  p.13, 
pp.12-13,  and  pp.  32-34  respectively;  Country  visit  Italy,  FNSI,  Ordine  dei  Giornalisti,  Ossigeno  per 
l’Informazione, and Articolo 21. 

125   Country visit Italy, Commissione Vigilanza RAI. 

14 

 
 
 
that the stalemate126 in the Parliamentary Committee relates to the appointment procedure127 
of  the  new  RAI  president128.  In  addition,  the  decision  of  the  CEO  of  RAI  to  introduce 
‘editorial  managers’  for  all  the  broadcaster’s  programmes  was  criticised  by  certain 
stakeholders,  since  in  their  view  it  could  increase  the  risks  of  undue  interference  by  the 
management vis-à-vis RAI’s journalists and newsrooms129. On the other hand, RAI indicated 
that  this  decision  was  part  of  its  internal  re-organisation  efforts  and  was  meant  to  ensure  a 
better separation of the administrative and editorial roles within the outlet, leaving editors-in-
chief  with  fewer  administrative  duties  on  top  of  their  editorial  responsibilities130.  The 
decision to reduce RAI’s licence fee to EUR 70 adopted in 2024, which entailed a 22% cut of 
RAI’s  independent  revenues,  was  not  confirmed  by  the  Budget  Law  for  2025,  leaving  the 
licence  fee  at  EUR  90,  the  same  level  as  in  2023131.  Although  stakeholders  welcomed  this 
development  as  it  would  increase  RAI’s  resources,  they  also  stressed  the  need  for  a 
comprehensive and structural reform of the funding system that should equip RAI with stable 
and predictable financial resources on a multi-annual basis132. Against this background, there 
has been some progress on the recommendation made in the 2024 Rule of Law Report.  

The general  legal framework for media  is  considered to be effective,  although there is 
room  for  simplification  in  certain  sectors  and  to  improve  public  support.  In  2024,  the 
rules  on  media  market  concentrations  were  upgraded  to  cover  players  like  video-sharing 
platforms  as  well  as  elements  such  as  online  advertising  revenues.  These  adjustments  were 
further  complemented  by  a  set  of  guidelines  adopted  by  AGCOM  on  the  criteria  to  be 
followed  for  the  assessment  of  positions  of  significant  market  power  detrimental  to  media 
pluralism133. Stakeholders considered these updates to be a positive development contributing 
to  aligning  the  concentrations  regime  more  with  the  new  market  dynamics.  In  this  respect, 
stakeholders  stressed  that  the  rules  for  assessing  concentrations  in  the  press  sector  –  which 
currently  do  not  take  account  of  the  impact  of  digitalisation  as  they  still  rely  solely  on  the 
level  of  print  circulation  –  would  also  need  to  be  changed.  Media  businesses  can  rely  on  a 
robust and effective regulatory  framework, but  some stakeholders consider that the TV and 
radio  sectors  are  subject  to  overregulation  that  would  require  better  streamlining  and 

126   Notwithstanding  the  new  management  board  was  established  in  October  2024,  RAI  still  does  not  have  a 
President  due  to  the  difficulties  within  the  Parliamentary  Committee  to  find  consensus  and  reach  the 
required majority to approve the proposed appointment,  Country visit Italy, Ordine dei Giornalisti, FNSI, 
Ossigeno per l’informazione, Articolo 21; 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, pp. 8-9.  

127   According to the relevant rules, although it is the management board who appoints the President among its 
members, the appointment becomes effective  only after the  Parliamentary Committee entrusted with RAI 
oversight approves it by a qualified majority (two-thirds of members), 2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, p. 
25. 

128   In  this  respect,  the  President  of  the  Parliamentary  Committee  entrusted  with  the  RAI  oversight  indicated 
that this stalemate is also impacting the effective ordinary functioning of the Committee, Country visit Italy, 
Commissione Vigilanza RAI.  

129   In particular, they indicated that the decision introduced an unnecessary and additional filter – on top of the 
editors-in-chief – which was not foreseen by foreseen by the rules governing the journalistic profession nor 
by  the  trade  union  agreements.  Country  visit  Italy,  Ordine  dei  Giornalisti,  FNSI,  Ossigeno  per 
l’informazione, Articolo 21. 

130   Country visit Italy, RAI. 
131   RAI (2025), written input, p. 3. 
132   RAI, OBCT, Ordine dei Giornalisti, FNSI, Civil Liberties Union for Europe (2025), written inputs, pp. 3-4, 
p. 13, p. 13, p. 12, and p. 29, respectively. Country visit Italy, RAI, Ordine dei Giornalisti, FNSI, Ossigeno 
per l’informazione, Articolo 21.  

133   Italian  Government  (2025a),  written  input,  pp.  40-41;  Civil  Liberties  Union  for  Europe  (2025),  written 

input, p.32; Country visit Italy, AGCOM; 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, p.7 and p.22. 

15 

 
 
 
simplification of the existing rules134. Stakeholders also indicated that the overall system of 
public  funding  for  the  media  sector  could  be  improved,  in  particular  by  ensuring  that 
initiatives  are  more  focused  on  providing  high-quality  public  interest  journalism  and  are 
developed in a more stable and structured manner, on a multi-year basis135.  

The rules on access to judicial information remain a source of concern for journalists. 
Following  the  adoption  of  the  Legislative  Decree  188/2021136  (the  “Cartabia  reform”),  – 
which  identified  the  Prosecutors’  offices  as  the  sole  authorities  allowed  to  disclose 
information on criminal proceedings to the press, new rules known as the “Nordio reform”137 
and  the  “Costa  amendment”138,  regulating  access  to  and  publication  of  certain  judicial 
information, have been introduced139. The Government considers that these measures ensure 
a fair balance between protecting the presumption of innocence and the freedom of the press 
and of information, as especially with respect to the Costa amendment, journalists would still 
be  able  to  inform  about  a  pre-trial  custody  order  by  summarising  or  paraphrasing  its 
content140. Several stakeholders, on the other hand, argued that the Costa amendment could 
have a chilling effect on journalists, who might be more exposed to defamation accusations in 
case  of  incorrect  summaries  or  reformulations141.  Stakeholders  also  indicated  that  after  the 
introduction of the Cartabia reform, there have been instances where Prosecutors’ offices did 
not  inform  the  press  about  facts  of  potential  public  interest.  The  Milan  Court,  the  Milan 
Prosecutor’s  Office  and  journalists’  associations  signed  a  memorandum  of  understanding 
calling to better regulate the flow of information on criminal proceedings. While welcoming 
the memorandum as good practice, stakeholders underlined that only a reform of the relevant 
rules could address their concerns about what they consider to be unwarranted restrictions on 
journalists' access to judicial information142.  

Although  relevant  rules  and  initiatives  for  their  protection  are  in  place,  journalists 
continue to face challenges in the exercise of their profession. The Italian legal framework 
foresees  specific  protection  protocols  for  journalists  under  threats143.  The  Specialised 
Coordination  Centre,  established  within  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  is  considered  by 
stakeholders  as  an  important  initiative  for  the  monitoring  of  cases  of  attacks  and  threats 
against  journalists144  and  it  ensures  the  implementation  of  the  relevant  legal  framework.  In 
the context of the Specialised Coordination Centre, the Ministry of Interior has established a 
technical panel gathering representatives of the institutions and relevant media stakeholders. 

134   Country visit Italy, FIEG and Confindustria.  
135   Ordine dei Giornalisti (2025), written input, p. 12; Country visit Italy, FIEG and Confindustria; 2025 Media 

Pluralism Monitor, pp. 25 and 33-34. 

136   Adopted to transpose Directive (EU) 2016/343 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 
2016 on the strengthening of certain aspects of the presumption of innocence and of the right to be present 
at the trial in criminal proceedings, OJ L 65, 11.3.2016., p. 1.  

137   Law No.114. 
138   Legislative Decree No. 198.  
139   While the Nordio reform prohibits the publication of wiretaps which have not been used in a trial, the Costa 
amendment  prohibits  the  publication,  before  the  end  of  the  investigations,  of  direct  textual  quotations  of 
pre-trial custody orders, 2024 Rule of Law Report, pp. 28-29. 

140   Country visit Italy, Ministry of Justice.  
141   2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, pp.15-16. 
142   Country visit Italy, FNSI, Ordine dei Giornalisti, Ossigeno per l’informazione, Articolo 21. 
143   These protocols involve police and judicial authorities and range from providing the concerned journalist 
with an armoured car up to a round-the-clock police escort, depending on the level of risks to the life of the 
journalist, Country visit Italy, Ministry of Interior. 

144   Ordine dei Giornalisti (2025), written input, p. 14; Country visit Italy, FNSI and Ordine dei Giornalisti. 

16 

 
 
 
The  purpose  of  the  technical  panel  is  to  work  on  new  initiatives  to  improve  the  safety  of 
journalists 145.  However,  cases  of  threats  and  intimidations  remain  a  source  of  concern  for 
journalists146. Since the 2024 Rule of Law Report, 11 alerts concerning Italy were registered 
by  the  Council  of  Europe’s  Platform  to  promote  the  protection  of  journalism  and  safety  of 
journalists  relating  to,  respectively,  three  cases  where  journalists  were  physically  attacked 
while on assignment, two cases of threats for reporting; two cases of targeting with spyware, 
a case of detention by police; a case of police search and seizure of a newspaper’s newsroom 
and  a  journalist’s  house;  and  a  case  about  the  below  mentioned  reform  of  the  defamation 
regime147. The Mapping Media Freedom platform reported 87 incidents, 57 of which related 
to different forms of attacks on journalists and 17 related to cases of legal incidents involving 
journalists148. The latest available data of the Coordination Centre also shows a 16% increase 
in  cases  of  intimidations  against  journalists  in  2024  compared  to  2023149.  The  recourse  to 
legal  actions  against  journalists  including  defamation  lawsuits  and  other  legal  actions  from 
politicians  and  members  of  the  Government  identified  as  SLAPPs  is  reported  by  some 
stakeholders  to  be  increasingly  worrying150.  In  2025,  reports  alleged  that  Paragon  spyware 
had  been  deployed  in  several  countries  across  Europe,  including  Italy151.  The  allegations 
raised concerns among stakeholders who stressed that the use of spyware against a journalist 
was  unprecedented  in  Italy  and  in  violation  of  professional  secrecy  and  relevant  national 
laws152.  The  Parliamentary  Committee  for  the  Security  of  the  Republic  (COPASIR), 
entrusted  with  oversight  over  the  Italian  intelligence  services’  activities,  conducted  an 
enquiry into the matter. In its report, approved unanimously and published in June 2025153, 
the Committee stated that it had not identified any use of the spyware by Italian intelligence 
services  to  target  Italian  journalists.  Nevertheless,  it  reserved  the  right  to  carry  out  further 
the  National 
investigations  as  appropriate.  In  parallel, 

the  Government 

instructed 

145  These  initiatives  include  the  introduction  of  a  specific  aggravating  circumstance  for  crimes  committed 
against  information  workers  as  well  as  facilitating  the  transposition  of  the  Directive  2024/1069  on 
protecting persons who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded claims or abusive court 
proceedings (‘Strategic lawsuits against public participation’). In parallel, the Government also announced 
its willingness to study suitable mechanisms to ensure safety of journalists in areas of crisis as well as high-
risk and war contexts, Italian Government (2025b), pp. 4-5.  

146   The MPM 2025 assesses the journalistic profession, standards and protection indicator to be at a medium-
high risk level, in view of key concerns such as an increase in threats and intimidation targeting journalists 
and cases of surveillance targeting journalists and activists, 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, p. 17. 

147   Italy  has  responded  to  eight  of  the  11  alerts,  Council  of  Europe,  Platform  to  promote  the  protection  of 

journalism and safety of journalists, Italy. 

148   In particular, out of 57 incidents related to different forms of attacks on journalists  11 incidents related to 
cases  of  physical  attacks,  10  incidents  related  to  cases  of  attacks  to  property,  and  36  related  to  cases  of 
verbal  attacks.  Concerning  other  types  of  incidents,  32  of  them  related  to  cases  of  censorship,  Mapping 
Media Freedom, Italy country profile. 

149   Ministry of Interior (2025), written input, p. 11. Out of the 114 cases registered, 12.1% concerned organised 
crime  and  65.8%  were  of  ‘political-social  nature’,  while  37  out  of  114  cases  (32.5%)  occurred  online, 
Ministry of Interior (2024), p. 5. 

150   Ossigeno per l’Informazione, Civil Liberties Union for Europe, OBCT (2025), written inputs, p. 12, pp. 36-
39 and p.16 respectively; Country visit Italy, Ossigeno per l’Informazione, FNSI, Ordine dei Giornalisti and 
Articolo 21; 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, pp. 6 and 14. 

151   International Federation of Journalists (2025). In February and May 2025, it was reported that two Italian 
journalists  were  targeted  by  spyware,  FNSI  (2025).  Italy  is  the  only  Member  State  where  some  of  the 
targeted individuals, in this case journalists, have come forward and made their case public.  

152   Country  visit  Italy,  Ordine  dei  Giornalisti,  FNSI,  Ossigeno  per  l’Informazione,  and  Articolo  21;  2025 

Media Pluralism Monitor, p. 18.  

153   Relazione sull’utilizzo dello spyware “Graphite” da parte dei servizi di informazione per la sicurezza della 

Repubblica, 4 June 2025. ‘Graphite’ is a type of spyware software produced by Paragon Solutions.   

17 

 
 
 
Cybersecurity Agency to investigate the case while underlining that it had no knowledge of 
the matter154. 

There has  been no  further progress  on the recommendation to reform the defamation 
regime155.  A  legislative  proposal156  to  reform  the  defamation  legislation157  is  still  under 
examination  by  the  Senate.  The  aim  is  to  address  the  jurisprudence  of  the  Constitutional 
Court,  and  to  strike  a  balance  between  the  freedom  of  information  and  the  protection  of 
reputation158.  Stakeholders  stressed  that  the  proposal  is  a  positive  step  forward  since  it 
foresees to formally abolish the penalty of imprisonment for press defamation and it provides 
for financial penalties for anyone who files a vexatious lawsuit against a journalist. However, 
concerns remain over certain elements which are seen as putting press freedom at risk, such 
as  the  increase  of  criminal  pecuniary  penalties159,  the  possibility  of  suspension  from 
performing  journalistic  activities160,  and  the  introduction  of  an  obligation  of  automatic 
rectification161.  Against  this  background,  there  has  been  no  further  progress  on  the 
recommendation made in the 2024 Rule of Law Report. 

IV. 

OTHER INSTITUTIONAL ISSUES RELATED TO CHECKS AND BALANCES 

Parliamentary  scrutiny  of  the  draft  constitutional  reform,  aimed  at  enhancing 
governmental  stability  and  introducing  the  direct  election  of  the  Prime  Minister,  is 
advancing. After its approval  in  the Senate in June 2024, the draft constitutional reform  is 
now  before  the  Constitutional  Affairs  Committee  of  the  Chamber,  which  is  conducting  a 
series of hearings with constitutionalists and experts162. In December 2024, the Minister for 
Institutional Reforms reiterated that the reform was a priority for the Government and for the 
country,  in  order  to  ensure  greater  stability  for  governments163.  Some  stakeholders  are 
concerned  that  by  altering  the  dynamics  between  the  President  and  the  Prime  Minister,  the 
proposed constitutional reform may impact checks and balances164. 

Stakeholders  reiterated  concerns  about  the  frequent  use  of  urgency  decrees  by  the 
Government.  According  to  official  data165,  in  the  current  legislature  (October  2022  to 
February 2025), the Government adopted 87 law decrees, 72 of which have been converted 
into ordinary laws. 48 out of 179 total laws approved by Parliament made use of a motion of 

154   Country visit Italy, Presidency of the Council of Ministers; 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, p. 18.  
155   The  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report  recommended  to  Italy  to  “Continue  the  legislative  process  on  the  draft 
reform  on  defamation,  the  protection  of  professional  secrecy  and  journalistic  sources  while  avoiding  any 
risk  of  negative  impacts  on  press  freedom  and  ensure  it  takes  into  account  European  standards  on  the 
protection of journalists”. 

156   Senate Act No. 466.  
157   Commission Recommendation on protecting journalists and human rights defenders who engage in public 
participation  from  manifestly  unfounded  or  abusive  court  proceedings  (‘Strategic  lawsuits  against  public 
participation’). 

158   2024 Rule of Law Report, Italy, pp. 30-31. 
159   The pecuniary penalties could reach up to EUR 50 000. 
160   A suspension could be from one to six months.  
161   FNSI, Ordine dei Giornalisti, OBCT, Ossigeno per l’informazione, Civil Liberties Union for Europe (2025), 
written  inputs,  p.  11,  p.  13,  pp.  16-17  and  p.  41  respectively;  Country  visit  Italy,  FNSI,  Ordine  dei 
Giornalisti, Ossigeno per l’informazione, Articolo 21 and FIEG; 2025 Media Pluralism Monitor, p.13.  

162   Draft Law AC 1921. 
163   ANSA (2024). 
164   National Association of Constitutionalists and the High School of the Judiciary (written inputs, pp. 6-7). 
165   Chamber of Deputies (205a). 

18 

 
 
 
confidence  in  at  least  one  of  the  branches  of  Parliament166.  Stakeholders  consider  that  the 
combined use of law decrees and the confidence motion might affect the separation of powers 
between the government and Parliament167. In August 2024, the President of the Chamber of 
Deputies highlighted the excessive use of law decrees and called on the Government to use 
the  instrument  more  rarely,  considering  that  it  could  jeopardise  the  legislative  function  of 
Parliament. According to the Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Chamber, although law 
decrees have been one of the main legislative instruments for years now, the prerogatives of 
Parliament would not be affected because in many cases Parliament amended the law decrees 
when converting them into law168. 

The Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Senate is discussing a draft law  to amend 
the  accounting  justice  code,  and  reform  the  Court  of  Auditors169.  The  objective  of  the 
draft  law  is  to  find  a  new  balance  in  the  system  of  fiscal  responsibility,  which  combines 
deterrence with respect to fiscal offences with avoiding that an excessive level of risk borne 
by the public official would translate into a disincentive to take action. The Court of Auditors 
expressed concerns about certain provisions in the draft law, warning that they could lead to 
inefficiencies  in  the  allocation  of  administrative  responsibilities;  in  its  view  this  could 
undermine legality, transparency and efficiency in the actions of public authorities and reduce 
accountability170. The Court of Auditors also explained that the reform falls within a context 
where  the  accounting  judiciary  is  still  experiencing  the  effects  of  the  reform  of  2020  (the 
‘public liability shield’), which limits the public financial liability of public officials to acts 
committed  with  intention  on  gross  negligence.  While  the  reform  aims  to  boost  the 
effectiveness of administrative action by mitigating the chilling effect associated with the risk 
of  liability,  the  Court  contends  that  it  hinders  the  capacity  of  accounting  magistrates  to 
address maladministration, irregularities, and misuse of public (both national and European) 
funds171. In the parliamentary discussion, central and local authorities expressed the need for 
a clear distinction between the Court’s audit and judicial competences, calling for the former 
to prevail.172 

On 1 January 2025, Italy had 74 leading judgments of the European Court of Human 
Rights  pending  implementation,  an  increase  of  8  compared  to  the previous  year173.  At 

166   Italian Government (2025a), written input, p. 2. 
167   Country visit Italy,  Emergency, ARCI, CILD, COSPE, Amnesty International, Antigone, Unione Forense 

per la Tutela dei Diritti Umani. 

168   Country visit Italy, Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Chamber. 
169   Draft Law AC No. 1621.  
170   The remarks of the Court of Auditors concerns, inter alia, the rules aimed at increasing extensively the area 
of exemption from liability in case of a favourable check given by the Court of Auditors in the context of 
the  pre-emptive  control;  and  the  rules  aimed  at  introducing  a  broad  and  not  clearly  defined  area  of 
exemption  for  acts  and  conducts  related  to  issues  that  were  the  object  of  a  request  for  an  opinion  of  the 
Court of Auditors. Court of Auditors and Prosecutor’s Office at the Court of Auditors (2025), written input, 
pp. 1-2. Court of Auditors and Prosecutor’s Office at the Court of Auditors also expressed strong concern 
about  the  proposal  to  reduce  the  number  of  local  courts  over  the  Italian  territory,  de  facto  abolishing  its 
regional  chambers  and  prosecutor  offices.  As  a  result of  this  stance,  this  proposal  was  removed  from  the 
draft law. Country visit Italy, Justice Committee of the Chamber. Concerns on the reform were expressed 
also by the Association of Magistrates of the Court of Auditors and by the National Bar Association. 

171   Court  of  Auditors  (2025),  written  input,  p.  2.  Decree  Law  16  July  2020,  No.  76  introduced  the  ‘public 
liability shield’ for public officials as a temporary measure to facilitate the implementation of measures of 
simplification within the public administration. It was then subsequently extended and now covers all the 
acts committed until 31 December 2024. 

172   Italian Government (2025b), p.8. 
173   For an explanation of the supervision process, see the website of the Council of Europe.   

19 

 
 
 
that time, Italy’s rate of leading judgments from the past 10 years that had been implemented 
was at 27% (compared to 35% in  2024; 73% remained pending),  and the average time that 
the judgments had been pending implementation was 6 years and 4 months (compared to 6 
years and 7 months in 2024)174. The oldest leading judgment, pending implementation for 24 
years,  concerns  excessive  length  of  criminal  proceedings175.  As  regards  the  respect  of 
payment deadlines, on 31 December 2024 there were 122 cases in total awaiting confirmation 
of payments (compared to 136 in 2023)176. On 16June 2025, the number of leading judgments 
pending implementation had remained 74177. 

Over half of the companies surveyed in Italy express confidence in the effectiveness of 
investment protection.  58% of companies are very or fairly confident that investments are 
protected by law and courts178. As regards authorities relevant for economic operators, 70% 
perceive the level of independence of the national competition authority (the Competition and 
Market Authority) as very or fairly good179. A number of judicial mechanisms are in place at 
the  level  of  the  Council  of  State  to  ensure  the  implementation  of  administrative  court 
judgments,  including  fines  for  responsible  officials  for  non-compliance,  the  possibility  to 
substitute  the  annulled  administrative  act,  to  order  compensation  and  award  direct  and 
consequential damages180. 

There  has  been  no  further  progress  on  the  recommendation  to  establish  a  National 
Human  Rights  Institution181.  While  five  draft  laws  are  still  pending  in  Parliament,  no 
concrete actions have been taken to establish a National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)182. 
One  of  the  draft  laws  pending  in  Parliament  (AS  505)  envisages  the  assignment  of  NHRI 
tasks to the Data Protection Authority. While the Authority was not involved in the relevant 
parliamentary debate, it declared to have the competence to fulfil this role183. In this regard, 
some  stakeholders  raised  doubts  as  to  the  capacity  of  the  Authority  to  take  on  the  role  of 
NHRI184.  Overall,  no  further  progress  has  been  made  to  implement  the  recommendation  to 
establish a NHRI. 

A  new  Security  Law  seeking  to  combat  terrorism  and  organised  crime  and  improve 
internal security raised stakeholder concerns over a possible impact on civic space and 

174   All figures calculated by the European Implementation Network (EIN) and based on the number of cases 
that are considered pending at the annual cut-off date of 1 January 2025. EIN (2025), written input, p. 5. 
175   European  Court of  Human  Rights,  judgment  of  12  August 1999,  Ledonne  v. Italy  (no. 1),  case  35742/97 

pending implementation since 1999.  

176   Council of Europe (2025), p. 157.   
177   Data according to the online database of the Council of Europe (HUDOC). 
178   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 54. 20% and 15% of the surveyed investors respectively perceive the 
frequent  changes  in  legislation  or  concerns  about  the  quality  of  the  law-making  process,  and  the  quality, 
efficiency  or  independence  of  justice,  respectively,  as  a  reason  for  the  lack  of  confidence  in  investment 
protection. 

179   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 60. 
180   2025 EU Justice Scoreboard, Figure 49. The data presented reflects exclusively the mechanisms in place at 
the level of the highest administrative jurisdictions; the same or other mechanisms may be in place at lower 
instance administrative courts. 

181   The  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report  recommended  to  Italy  to  ‘[s]tep  up  efforts  to  establish  a  National  Human 

Rights Institution taking into account the UN Paris Principles’. 

182   Italian Government (2025a), written input, pp. 43-44. 
183   Country visit Italy, Data Protection Authority. 
184   Country visit Italy, COSPE. Civil Liberties (2025), written input, p. 43-44. 

20 

 
 
 
the exercise of fundamental freedoms. Civic space in Italy is rated as ‘narrowed’185. On 4 
June 2025, Parliament adopted the Security Law by converting the Government Decree that 
had entered into force in April 2025186. The objective of the Law is to combat terrorism and 
organised  crime,  managing  seized  assets,  urban  security,  protecting  security  personnel,  and 
handling prisoners and related work activities187. It includes a number of criminal offences, 
inter alia increasing the penalties for destruction or damage of property caused by violence at 
public  demonstrations  and  for  blocking  roads  or  railways,  and  prohibiting  access  to  certain 
areas  and  means  of  transportation  by  persons  reported  or  convicted  of  crimes  against  the 
person  or  property  committed  in  the  same  area  and  transforming  certain  administrative 
offences  into  a  criminal  offence188.  In  a  letter  to  the  President  of  the  Senate,  the 
Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe had expressed concerns that a lack 
of precision in the draft law could allow for arbitrary and disproportionate application which 
could  potentially  conflict  with  the  European  Convention  on  Human  Rights189.  Six  United 
Nations Special Rapporteurs had also expressed concerns that the draft law risked violating a 
number of rights, notably the right to freedom of expression and opinion, the right to freedom 
of peaceful assembly and the right to freedom of association190. Similar concerns have also 
been expressed by civil society organisations191. The Government considers instead that the 
new provisions achieve a balance between the right to peaceful assembly and the right to free 
movement  and  personal  freedom,  all  of  which  are  protected  by  the  Constitution 192. On  23 
June  2025,  the  High  Court  of  Cassation  issued  its  periodic  report  on  the  latest  legislative 
measures,  which  also  included  an  opinion  on  the  Security  Law,  providing  observations  on 
both substance and procedure193. 

185   See  https://monitor.civicus.org/country/italy/.  Rating  by  CIVICUS;  ratings  are  on  a  five-category  scale 

defined as: open, narrowed, obstructed, repressed and closed. 

186   Decree-Law No. 48.  
187   Italian  Government  (2025c),  Press  Release  of  4  April  2025:  Press  conference  following  Council  of 

Ministers meeting no. 122.  

188   Inter alia, disrupting traffic with one’s own body would be punishable by 6 months to two years in prison if 
carried  out  by  at  least  two  people.  Resistance,  including  passive  resistance,  in  the  context  of  protests  in 
prisons would be punishable by one to five years (or two to eight years for those who promote, organize or 
lead the action). Similarly, resistance, including passive resistance, in the context of protests in immigration 
detention centers and reception centers would be punishable by one to four years (and by 18 months to five 
years for those who promote, organize, or lead the action). The law would also give police broader authority 
to ban individuals from accessing areas near roads, railways, airports and other infrastructure for up to one 
year. 

189   The  letter  was  published  on 20  December  2024 on  the  website  of  the  Council  of  Europe,  available  here. 

Concerns were already expressed by OSCE in May 2024 (the opinion is available here). 

190   The letter is available here. 
191   Country visit  Italy,  Emergency,  ARCI,  COSPE,  Amnesty  International,  Unione  Forense per  la Tutela  dei 
Diritti Umani,  Associazione Antigone, Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso.  Letter of European Civic Forum to 
Director-General Ana Gallego of 16 April 2025. 

192   The Italian authorities refer to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights in Bodson and Others 
v.  Belgium  as  concerns  legitimate  limitations  to  freedom  of  assembly  related  to  (malicious)  traffic 
obstructions, Italian Government (2025b), pp, 6-7. 

193  High  Court  of  Cassation  (2025),  Report  n.  33/2025.  The  report  in  particular  points  at  the  use  of  the 
extraordinary urgency procedure as well as the proportionality of certain sanctions and includes reflections 
on the constitutional viability of the Law.  

21 

 
 
 
Annex I: List of sources in alphabetical order* 

The list of contributions received in the context of the consultation for the 2025 Rule of Law report 
can 
https://commission.europa.eu/publications/2025-rule-law-report-targeted-
found 
stakeholder-consultation_en.  

be 

at 

AC  2084  (2024),  Parlamento  Italiano  -  Disegno  di  legge  C.  2084  -  19ª  Legislatura  |  Senato  della 
Repubblica 

ANAC (2024a), Decision No. 493, on the prohibition of pantouflage, https://www.anticorruzione.it/-
/news.13.11.24.linee.guida.pantouflage  

ANAC 
settembre-2024  

(2024b)  Resolution  No.  495,  https://www.anticorruzione.it/-/delibera-n.-495-del-25-

ANAC  (2024c),  Decision  No.  497,  Indications  to  contracting  authorities  regarding  the  methods  of 
carrying  out  checks  and  verifications  during  the  executive  phase  of  service  and  supply  contracts, 
https://www.anticorruzione.it/documents/91439/190202672/Delibera+n.+497+del+29+ottobre+2024.
pdf/15e8098a-0a8a-2599-00f8-f8afdf4cc3f5?t=1732029463913  

ANAC (2024d), Annual Activity Report, https://www.anticorruzione.it/-/relazione.annuale.2024. 

ANAC (2024e), Giuseppe Busia "La riforma Nordio farà male al Pil. Senza abuso d'ufficio cittadini 
più sfiduciati", https://www.anticorruzione.it/-/rs.lastampa.12.07.2024. 

ANAC  (2025a),  Update  to  the  National  Anticorruption  Plan,  https://www.anticorruzione.it/en/-
/del.31-30.01.2025.pna 

(2025b), 

ANAC 
ANAC 
https://www.anticorruzione.it/documents/91439/307867242/Anac+-
+Presentazione+della+Relazione+annuale+2025+su+attivit%C3%A0+2024.pdf/76ef621e-7ee4-8865-
2904-a8f2e912c7b6?t=1747761198450.  

activity 

annual 

report 

for 

2024, 

ANSA, Casellati, la riforma del premierato è una scelta obbligata, 12 december 2024, Casellati, la 
riforma del premierato è una scelta obbligata - Ultima ora - Ansa.it 

Centre  for  Media  Pluralism  and  Media  Freedom  (2025),  Media  pluralism  monitor  2025  –  country 
report on Italy, https://cmpf.eui.eu/projects/media-pluralism-monitor/  

Chamber  of  Deputies  (2025a),  Draft  Law  A.C.  2336,  Regulation  of  the  activity  of  institutional 
relations  for  the  representation  of  interests  (Disciplina  dell’attività  di  relazioni  istituzionali  per  la 
rappresentanza di interessi).  

Chamber of Deputies (2025b), Committee for Constitutional Affairs, Council Presidency and Home 
, 
Affairs 
https://www.camera.it/leg19/1101?idLegislatura=19&idCommissione=&tipoElenco=indaginiConosci
tiveCronologico&annoMese=&breve=c01_rappresentanza_interessi&calendario=false&soloSten=fals
e&foglia=true&shadow_organo_parlamentare=3501&id_tipografico=01.   

Civil  Liberties  Union 
https://www.liberties.eu/en/stories/rolreport2025-main/45330.   

for  Europe 

(2025),  The  Liberties  Rule  of  Law  Report, 

Committee  of  Ministers  of 
the  Council  of  Europe,  Recommendation  CM/Rec(2010)12, 
https://search.coe.int/cm#{%22CoEIdentifier%22:[%2209000016805afb78%22],%22sort%22:[%22C
oEValidationDate%20Descending%22]}.  

Committee for Transparency and Control of Political Parties and Political Movements (2024), Annual 
activity 
report, 
(https://www.camera.it/application/xmanager/projects/leg19/attachments/uploadfile_commissione_tra
sparenza/pdfs/000/000/020/CRP_Relazione_29042024.pdf).   

22 

 
 
 
Superiore 

Consiglio 
https://www.csm.it/web/csm-internet/attualita/news/-/asset_publisher/9tbuc9iuwq32/content/testo-
unico-sulla-dirigenza-giudiziaria/maximized?inheritRedirect=falseCorte  Constituzionale,  Judgment 
No. 204 of 17 December 2024.  

della  Magistratura, 

Testo  Unico 

giudiziaria, 

dirigenza 

sulla 

Council of Europe: Committee of Ministers (2025), Supervision of the execution of judgments and 
decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, 18th Annual Report of the Committee of Ministers, 
https://rm.coe.int/gbr-2001-18e-rapport-annuel-2024/1680b4d77d. 

Council of Europe, Platform to promote the protection of journalism and safety of journalists – Italy, 
https://fom.coe.int/en/pays/detail/11709530  

Council  of  Europe,  Table  of  cases  under  enhanced  supervision  of  the  Committee  of  Ministers,   
https://rm.coe.int/table-of-cases-enha-eng-not-for-lawyers-/1680b303bb. 

Decree-Law No. 25 of 14 March 2025, coordinated with the law of conversion no. 69 of 9 May 2025, 
containing: 
'Urgent  provisions  on  recruitment  and  functionality  of  public  administrations’. 
https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/atto/serie_generale/caricaDettaglioAtto/originario?atto.dataPubblicazi
oneGazzetta=2025-05-13&atto.codiceRedazionale=25A02898&elenco30giorni=true  

European  Centre  for  Press  and  Media  Freedom,  Mapping  Media  Freedom,  Italy  country  profile, 
https://www.mappingmediafreedom.org/category/italy/  

European Commission (2023), Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council 
on 
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-
corruption 
content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2023%3A234%3AFIN.  

(COM/2023/234 

combating 

final), 

European Commission (2024), 2024 Rule of Law Report, Country Chapter on the rule of law situation 
in Italy. 

European  Court  of  Human  Rights,  judgment  of  12  August  1999,  Ledonne  v.  Italy  (no.  1),  case 
35742/97, 
https://www.google.com/search?q=Judgment+of+the+ECtHR%2C+35742%2F97%2C+Ledonne+v.+
Italy+(no.+1)%2C&oq=Judgment+of+the+ECtHR%2C+35742%2F97%2C+Ledonne+v.+Italy+(no.+
1)%2C&gs_lcrp=EgRlZGdlKgYIABBFGDkyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQ6QcY_FXSAQcyODBqMGo5
qAIAsAIB&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 

European Implementation Network (EIN) (2025), Written input for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

Federazione  Nazionale  Stampa  Italiana  (2025),  Contribution  from  Federazione  Nazionale  Stampa 
Italiana for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

GRECO  (2024a),  Fifth  Evaluation  Round,  https://rm.coe.int/fifth-evaluation-round-preventing-
corruption-and-promoting-integrity-i/1680b16315 

GRECO  (2024b),  Fourth  Evaluation  Round,  Second  Addendum  to  the  Second  Compliance  Report, 
https://rm.coe.int/fourth-evaluation-round-corruption-prevention-in-respect-of-members-
of/1680a8018a 

High Council for the Judiciary (2025), Contribution from the High Council for the Judiciary for the 
2025 Rule of Law Report. 

High 
Cassation 
https://www.cortedicassazione.it/resources/cms/documents/Rel.332025.pdf  

(2025), 

Report 

Court 

of 

n. 

33/2025, 

High School of the Judiciary (2025), Contribution from the High School of the Judiciary for the 2025 
Rule of Law Report.  

Il  Fatto  Quotidiano  (2024a),  L’imprenditore  Stefano  Ricucci  condannato  a  6  anni  di  carcere  per 
corruzione 
in  atti  giudiziari,  https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2024/12/09/limprenditore-stefano-
ricucci-condannato-a-6-anni-di-carcere-per-corruzione-in-atti-giudiziari/7798241/.   

23 

 
 
Il  Fatto  Quotidiano  (2024b),  Corruzione  negli  appalti  per  il  Giubileo,  perquisizioni  al  Comune  di 
Roma, 
https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2024/11/13/corruzione-appalti-giubileo-comune-roma-
campidoglio/7765367/.  

International  Federation  of  Journalists  (2025),  Italy:  IFJ  and  EFJ  support  journalists’  union  legal 
https://www.ifj.org/media-centre/news/detail/category/press-
action 
releases/article/italy-journalists-union-takes-legal-action-over-paragon-case   

Paragon 

case, 

over 

Italian  Government  (2025a),  Contribution  from  the  Italian  Government  for  the  2025  Rule  of  Law 
Report. 

Italian Government (2025b), Additional written contribution for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

Italian  Government  (2025c),  Press  Release  of  4  April  2025:  Press  conference  following  Council  of 
Ministers  meeting  no.  122,  https://www.governo.it/en/articolo/press-conference-following-council-
ministers-meeting-no-122/28148.  

Law  (draft)  A.C.  No.  1621,  Amendments  to  Law  No.  20  of  14  January  1994,  to  the  Accounting 
Justice Code, as per Annex 1 to Legislative Decree No. 174 of 26 August 2016, and other provisions 
on  the  control  and  advisory  functions  of  the  Court  of  Auditors  and  liability  for  damage  to  the 
Treasury, https://www.camera.it/leg19/126?leg=19&idDocumento=1621.  

Law (draft) A.S. 552, Amendment to Law No. 96 of 6 July 2012 on the regulation of the Commission 
for the verification of statutes and the control of the accounts of political parties. Information received 
in 
from  Parliamentary  Committees,  
https://www.senato.it/leg/19/BGT/Schede/Ddliter/56635.htm.   

country 

context 

Italy 

visit 

the 

the 

of 

to 

Law (draft) AS 1353.Law (draft) A.C. No. 1921. 

Ministry of Interior (2025a),  Contribution from the Italian Ministry of Interior for the 2025 Rule of 
Law Report. 

Ministry  of 
https://www.interno.gov.it/sites/default/files/2025-04/report_atti_intimidatori_giornalisti_2024.pdf 

intimidatori  nei  confronti  dei  giornalisti  –  2024, 

(2025b),  Atti 

Interior 

National  Action  Plan  for  Open  Government  (2024),  https://www.opengovpartnership.org/wp-
content/uploads/2024/08/Italy_Action-Plan_2024-2026_June_EN.pdf.  

Bar 

Association 

National 
https://www.consiglionazionaleforense.it/documents/20182/3603938/INTERVENTO+Presidente+CN
F+-+INAUGURAZIONE+A.+G.+CORTE+DEI+CONTI+2025.pdf/4b73d555-78b0-a6eb-ef61-
eab08a488baa?t=1739542646916.  

interview 

(2025), 

President,  

its 

to 

OECD  (2024),  Implementing  the  OECD  Anti-Bribery  Convention  Phase  4  Two-Year  Follow-Up 
Report:  Italy,  https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/implementing-the-oecd-anti-bribery-convention-
phase-4-two-year-follow-up-report-italy_5841d4d2-en.html.  

Open  Polis  (2024),  Why  are  we  forced  to  present  yet  another  FOIA  on  the  PNRR?,  
https://www.openpolis.it/perche-siamo-costretti-a-presentare-lennesimo-foia-sul-pnrr/.  

Ordine  dei  Giornalisti  (2025),  Contribution  from  Ordine  dei  Giornalisti  for  the  2025  Rule  of  Law 
Report. 

Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (2025), Contribution from Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso 
Transeuropa for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

Ossigeno  per  l’informazione  (2025),  Contribution  from  Ossigeno  per  l’informazione  for  the  2025 
Rule of Law Report. 

RAI (2025), Contribution from RAI for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

Reuters  (2024),  Two  Italian  prosecutors  convicted  for  hiding  documents  in  Eni-Shell  Nigeria  trial, 
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/two-italian-prosecutors-convicted-hiding-documents-eni-shell-
nigeria-trial-2024-10-08/.  

24 

 
 
Senate Act No. 466 (2024). 

Sistema  Penale  (2023),  Gli  aspetti  autoritari  della  mera  cancellazione  dell’abuso  di  ufficio, 
https://www.sistemapenale.it/it/opinioni/donini-gli-aspetti-autoritari-della-mera-cancellazione-
dellabuso-di-ufficio.  

Speech by the First President of the High Court of Cassation at the opening ceremony of the judicial 
year 2025 (2025). 

Speech by the Minister of Justice at the inauguration of the judicial year (2025), "Discorso del Primo 
Presidente della Corte di Cassazione alla cerimonia di apertura dell'anno giudiziario 2025." 

Speech of the representative of the Bar at the opening ceremony of the judicial tax year 2025 on 12 
March 2025, https://webtv.camera.it/evento/27602. 

Transparency  International  (2024),  Il  monitoraggio  sull'integrità  della  politica  in  tutta  Europa, 
https://www.transparency.it/informati/news/integrity-watch-integrita-politica-europa.  

United 
https://www.unodc.org/documents/treaties/UNCAC/Publications/Convention/08-50026_E.pdf  

Convention 

Corruption 

Nations 

against 

(2003), 

Venice  Commission  (2013),  CDL-AD(2013)038,  https://www.coe.int/en/web/venice-commission/-
/CDL-AD(2013)038-e.  

25 

 
 
Annex II: Country visit to Italy 

The Commission services held virtual meetings in February and March 2025 with: 

•  Communications  Regulatory  Authority 

(Autorità  per 

le  Garanzie  nelle 

Comunicazioni) 

Italian Association of Constitutionalists (Associazione Italiana dei Costituzionalisti) 

•  Amnesty International Italy 
•  ARCI 
•  Articolo 21 
•  National Anti-Corruption Authority (Autorità Nazionale Anticorruzione) 
•  Anti-corruption Unit of the Financial Police 
• 
•  Association Antigone 
•  Association of Journalists (Ordine dei Giornalisti) 
•  CILD 
•  Committee for EU Affairs of the Chamber of Deputies 
•  Committee for EU Affairs of the Senate of the Republic 
•  Committee for Justice Affairs of the Senate of the Republic 
•  Committee  for  Statutes,  Transparency  and  Accountability  of  Political  Parties 
(Commissione  di  garanzia  degli  statuti  e  per  la  trasparenza  e  il  controllo  dei 
rendiconti dei partiti politici) 

•  Confartigianato 
•  Confcommercio 
•  Confindustria 
•  Constitutional Court (Corte Costituzionale) 
•  COSPE 
•  Council for Tax Justice (Consiglio di Presidenza della Giustizia Tributaria) 
•  Council  of  Administrative  Justice  (Consiglio  di  Presidenza  della  Giustizia 

Amministrativa) 

•  Council of State (Consiglio di Stato) 
•  Council of the Court of Auditors (Consiglio di Presidenza della Corte dei Conti) 
•  Court of Auditors (Corte dei Conti) 
•  Data Protection Authority (Garante per la Protezione dei Dati Personali) 
•  Democratic Area for Justice (Area Democratica per la Giustizia) 
•  Democratic Judiciary (Magistratura Democratica) 
•  Department for Institutional Reforms (Dipartimento per le Riforme istituzionali) 
•  Department for Tax Justice (Dipartimento di Giustizia Tributaria) 
•  Emergency 
•  FIEG 
• 
•  High Court of Cassation (Corte Suprema di Cassazione) 
•  High Council for the Judiciary (Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura) 
• 
• 
•  Libera 

Independent Judiciary (Magistratura Indipendente) 
Italian Competition Authority (Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato) 

Italian National Press Federation (Federazione Nazionale Stampa Italiana) 

26 

 
 
•  Ministry  for  Enterprises  and  Made  in  Italy  (Ministero  delle  Imprese  e  del  Made  in 

Italy) 

•  Ministry of Interior 
•  Ministry of Justice 
•  National Anti-mafia and Anti-terrorism Directorate (Direzione Nazionale Antimafia e 

Antiterrorismo) 

•  National Association of Magistrates (Associazione Nazionale Magistrati) 
•  National Bar Association (Consiglio Nazionale Forense) 
•  National School of Administration (Scuola Nazionale dell’Amministrazione) 
•  Open Polis 
•  Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso 
•  Ossigeno per l’Informazione 
•  Presidency of the Council of Ministers 
•  Prosecution  Service  at  the  High  Court  of  Cassation  (Procura  Generale  presso  la 

Corte Suprema di Cassazione) 

•  General  Prosecutor’s  Office  at  the  Court  of  Auditors  (Ufficio  del  Procuratore 

Generale presso la Corte dei Conti) 
•  RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. 
•  High School of the Judiciary (Scuola Superiore della Magistratura) 
•  The Good Lobby 
•  Transparency International – Italy 
•  Union of Italian Criminal Chambers (Unione delle Camere Penali Italiane) 
•  Lawyers'  Union  for  the  Protection  of  Human  Rights  (Unione  Forense  per  la  Tutela 

dei Diritti Umani) 

•  Unity for the Constitution (Unità per la Costituzione) 

* The Commission also met the following organisations in a number of horizontal meetings:  

•  Amnesty International  
•  Araminta  
•  Civil Liberties Union for Europe   
•  Civil Society Europe   
•  European Civic Forum   
•  European Partnership for Democracy  
•  European Youth Forum,  
• 

• 

International Commission of Jurists   
International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)  
JEF Europe  

• 
•  Philea – Philanthropy Europe Association.  
•  Transparency International 

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