ITALY Law and Practice Contributed by: Alessandro Pistochini, Luca Moglia, Giovanni Bellissimo and Giulia Barattini, Pistochini Avvocati Studio Legale
5. Key Trends and Future Outlook 5.1 The Year Ahead In the year ahead, developments in the field of white- collar crime in Italy are likely to be shaped more by the consolidation of recent reforms and increasingly assertive cross-border action, rather than by sweep - ing new reforms. On the political side, reform of the justice system remains a topic of debate. The proposal to separate the careers of judges and prosecutors is progressing through Parliament and could be finalised by 2026, following the necessary readings and a confirmatory referendum. This change may also have implications for the conduct of economic crime prosecutions. At the same time, the Ministry of Justice has convened a technical working group to review the corporate liability regime under Legislative Decree 231/2001, with the aim of updating the catalogue of predicate offences and assessing possible procedural reforms. In parallel, policy discussions on export controls and restrictive measures are ongoing, with closer scru - tiny of dual-use goods and compliance with embar - goes expected alongside traditional corporate crime enforcement.
There is currently no formal pan-European defence mechanism for coordination. In practice, compa - nies and individuals facing parallel investigations will engage teams in each jurisdiction and strive to align their strategies across borders. Italian law allows the use of material disclosed abroad to mount a defence, but strategic choices must be aligned across jurisdic - tions to avoid inconsistent positions. There are, however, recognised limits on cross-border co-operation. Requests must respect Italian constitu - tional guarantees, including the right to a fair trial and the prohibition of double jeopardy (ne bis in idem). EU law reinforces this: a final judgment in another member state bars fresh proceedings in Italy on the same facts. Data protection rules (GDPR) also apply, and evidence obtained in breach of privacy or defence rights may, depending on the circumstances, be excluded.
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