LexBlog (LexBlog Italy)

On Nov. 10, 2023, the European Commission authorized a State aid scheme presented by Italy, earmarking EUR 1.7 billion to bolster agrivoltaic plants. Click here to continue reading the full GT Alert.

Poor conditions at a production site likely contributed to a Salmonella outbreak that sickened more than 60 people in Italy, according to researchers. In the summer of 2022, a foodborne outbreak involving 63 people occurred in the Marche region of central Italy. A common food exposure among cases was a roasted, ready-to-eat (RTE) pork product...

Experts have named norovirus the leading cause of viral foodborne illness, followed by Hepatitis A and Hepatitis E. Hepatitis A and E viruses were ranked equally but higher compared to norovirus in terms of clinical severity by scientists at a recent meeting organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Food and Agriculture...

The Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium claims that Italy’s renowned Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is one of the most counterfeited cheeses in the world. Scott Hervey and Jamie Lincenberg discuss how they plan to fight off these counterfeits on this episode of The Briefing. Watch this episode on the Weintraub YouTube channel or listen to this podcast episode here.

On October 9, 2023, the last Ministerial Decree required for the final implementation of Italy’s Register of Trusts was published, and the Register of Trusts is now in effect. The initial filing deadline is December 11, 2023. The filing in the Register is required for domestic trusts, private foundations, and similar legal arrangements, defined as...

On October 16, the Council of Ministers approved a legislative proposal that will repeal the special tax regime for new resident workers, entrepreneurs, and professionals with effect from January 1, 2024. The special regime, enacted in its final form in 2020, allows Italian and foreign nationals who establish their tax residence in Italy while not...

Two years ago, I would never have imagined that I would spend my first summer of law school galivanting across Europe as part of my legal education, but when a once in a lifetime opportunity presents itself, you got to take it. My road to Salzburg, Austria began the day I received my acceptance letter...

In the INTERPOL practice, it is often beneficial to engage co-counsel in the country where the Red Notice, diffusion, or other notice originated. Toward that end, I often consult with colleagues in other countries regarding our mutual practices and cases. As a member of the WORLDWIDE INDEPENDENT LAWYERS LEAGUE, I recently had the privilege of...

A few weeks ago, on the way back home from a great family vacation in Italy, I traveled on a long 10 hour flight from Rome to Chicago. Since I have a hard time sleeping on planes, I watched several movies on the “friendly skies” of my United Arlines flight. I was in for a...

In its ruling n. 370 issued on July 4, 2023, the Italian Tax Agency concluded that in a case of a change of tax residency during the year, the treaty provision according to which the change of tax residence takes effect on the day of the transfer out of Italy to the foreign country is...

On June 23, 2023, the Italian government announced that foreign workers would be permitted to begin working in Italy while they wait to sign a contratto di soggiorno (contract of stay) at the immigration office. The change is part of a package of reforms intended to enable qualified foreign workers to begin employment in Italy...

Following their call for evidence in November 2022, on 1 June 2023, the European Supervisory Authorities (“ESAs”) published their first progress reports on greenwashing (the “Reports”) to better identify the phenomenon and to assess which areas of the sustainable investment value chain (“SIVC”) are more exposed to greenwashing risks. In the Reports the ESAs have...

With a first instance ruling issued on 20 April 2023 (available on sistemaproprietaintellettuale.it), the Court of Florence has ordered Condé Nast (editor of GQ Italy) to pay EUR 50,000 plus interest as compensation for damages arising from the unauthorized use of the image of the David by Michelangelo. The case, which was brought by the...

The Italian Tax Agency’s Ruling n. 309 of April 28, 2023 (Risposta-n.-309_2023-1.pdf) deals with the issue of taxation to Italian beneficiaries of income distributions from a U.S. trust. Background. Under Italy’s tax law, trusts with identified income beneficiaries are treated as fiscally transparent, and the beneficiaries are taxed on their share of the income of...

A Staphylococcus aureus outbreak in Italy has been associated with food handler contamination, based on findings from a study. The outbreak was because of the contamination of food from an asymptomatic food handler. Staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP) is caused by the ingestion of preformed staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs), produced by enterotoxigenic strains of coagulase-positive staphylococci (

On 18 May 2023, UNIDROIT’s Governing Council reported that it had adopted the UNIDROIT principles on digital assets and private law (the principles) at its 102nd session in Rome, Italy. The principles were prepared by a working group on digital assets and private law, which comprised of 25 members, 22 observers from international, regional and...

The European Food Safety Authority(EFSA) based in Parma, Italy last week held a two-day scientific colloquium to gather views and insights from leading scientific minds, representatives of European, international, and national agencies, technology companies, and food operators, consumer groups, and an array of individuals and other organizations with an interest in this highly topical issue. ...

Provisional political agreement on AI ACT On April 27th, 2023, a provisional political agreement was reached on the world’s first regulation on Artificial Intelligence. Among the key points are: Stricter obligations for basic models, which include ChatGpt; Design of generative AI systems in compliance with EU law and fundamental rights, including freedom of expression; Understanding...

WHAT ACTIONS COULD EMPLOYERS IN ITALY TAKE TO FIGHT AGAINST GENDER PAY GAP, IRRESPECTIVE OF A SPECIFIC ITALIAN LEGISLATION ALREADY IN FORCE ? According to official statistics data, the gender pay gap in Italy is theoretically about 5%, but in reality it is much wider if we consider the variable part of salary (estimated at...

Five people died in a recent outbreak in Italy linked to unpasteurized dairy products, according to a study. Infections were caused by consuming unpasteurized fresh cheese produced from contaminated cow’s milk. The incident was considered to be the largest and most severe outbreak associated with raw milk cheese in Italy, said researchers in the journal...

Update on ChatGPT in Italy   Other countries have followed the Italian example.  Investigations and inquiries into the privacy of Chat GPT, the artificial intelligence developed by OpenAI, are spreading rapidly. Following the Italian Data Protection Authority’s findings that led to the blockage of Chat GPT in Italy, other countries have begun to investigate this...

IntroductionBy way of an interim measure adopted on 30 March 2023, the Italian Data Protection Authority (Garante per la protezione dei dati personali) (the Garante) ordered  the US company Open AI LLC to temporarily stop ChatGPT’s processing of personal data relating to individuals located in Italy, pending the outcome of the Garante’s investigation into the...

The Italian Tax Agency recently issued a ruling (n. 251 of March 16, 2023) that provides guidance on the Italian tax classification of Family Trusts and Testamentary Trusts and the taxation of Italian beneficiaries on the trusts’ income. Background The settlor, an Australian national, established the trusts while he was a resident of Australia. He...

With its Ruling n. 237 of March 2, 2023 (Risposta n. 237-2023), the Italian Tax Agency ruled that when the trustee of a foreign trust is required to make an annual distribution to the beneficiaries of the trust of cash or other property of the trust that represent a predetermined percentage of the fair market...

On March 9, 2023, the Council of Ministers approved Legislative Decree No. 24 of March 10, 2023 (the “Decree”) implementing Directive (EU) 2019/1937 on whistleblowing(the “Directive”), which partially amends the draft decree that was preliminarily approved on December 9, 2022 (the “Draft Decree”). The Decree will enter into force on March 30, 2023 and apply...

Italy has reported the highest annual total of Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) cases since records began. From January to December 2022, 91 cases were recorded. This is the most observed in a single year since the start of surveillance in 1988. HUS is a severe complication associated with E. coli infection that causes kidney failure...

Would it even be the Super Bowl if there wasn’t a blog post asking about your favorite commercials? Are your top choices dictated by the product, the celebrity, or the content? Did you prefer the spoofs on something familiar or the entirely new and unexpected? I look forward to this debate every year. It all...

The Italian tax administration, in its Circular n. 34 of October 20, 2022, provided some new guidance on the international tax reporting obligations for assets held in foreign trusts. Domestic trusts report foreign assets held under the name of the trust on their own income tax return. In the case of foreign trusts, the reporting...

Italian researchers have looked at botulism trends over two decades including a large outbreak in 2020. Italy has one of the highest botulism rates in Europe with one factor being a strong home canning tradition in the country. From 1986 to September 2022, 406 botulism incidents involving 599 people were laboratory confirmed. The study described...

On September 1, 2022, the Italian Supreme Court issued a ruling (n. 25698) in a case concerning a distribution from a U.S. partnership treated as a taxable dividend in Italy. The dividend was taxed by way of a substituted tax, and Italian tax law did not allow a credit for the income tax paid the...