ITALY Law and Practice Contributed by: Renato Fiumalbi, Simone Barnaba, Alessandra Lucchini and Valeria Daloiso, Eversheds Sutherland
If the plaintiff fails to comply, the court can order it to pursue the attempt of mediation or nego- tiation. If the plaintiff does not comply with this order, the court can dismiss the claim. The plaintiff is not required to send a pre-action letter and the potential defendant is not required to respond to such a letter, if any. Nevertheless, it is common that, before initiating proceedings, the plaintiff sends a formal notice to the defend- ant and the latter responds to such a letter. 3.2 Statutes of Limitations The statute of limitation applicable to civil suits is ten years and starts on the day the right can be exercised. A shorter period applies in certain cases, for example: • five years as regards tort liability; • five years as regards rights arising out of cor- porate relationships; and • one year as regards rights arising out of ship- ping contracts and contracts of carriage. The law sets out in detail the cases in which the limitation period is suspended or interrupted. 3.3 Jurisdictional Requirements for a Defendant The jurisdictional requirements for a defend- ant to be sued in Italy are governed by Law No 218/1995, according to which: • Italian jurisdiction exists if the defendant is domiciled in Italy or has in Italy a representa- tive authorised to appear in court; and • in civil and commercial matters, the rules set forth in EU Regulation No 1215 of 2012 (“Brussels Recast”) apply; Brussels Recast must be considered applicable for the regu- lation of conflicts of jurisdiction even if they concern non-EU states.
The general rule is that of the defendant’s domi- cile. By way of example, other rules are provided for: • in contractual matters, a person may be sued before the court of the state of performance of the obligation; and • in tort matters, a person may be sued before the court of the state where the harmful event occurred. Italian jurisdiction exists if the parties have con- ventionally accepted it and this acceptance is evidenced in writing, or if the defendant enters an appearance without objecting to the lack of jurisdiction. 3.4 Initial Complaint The initial phase of the lawsuit varies depending on the type of procedure chosen. In ordinary proceedings, the plaintiff sues other parties by means of a writ of summons. The writ of summons must contain: • the indication of the court before which the claim is brought; • the name, surname, residence of the plain- tiff, and the name, surname, residence or domicile of the defendant and of the persons representing or assisting them; if the plaintiff or defendant is a company, it must contain its name or business name, and the indica- tion of the body or office representing it in the proceedings; • the indication, in cases where the application is subject to a condition as to admissibility, of the fulfilment of the condition; • the subject of the claim;
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