Italian Supreme Court, Fifth Criminal Section, judgment no. 37665, filed on 18 November 2025.

Counsel holding a special power of attorney may delegate the filing of the declaration joining criminal proceedings as a civil party to substitute counsel. The Supreme Court recalls Article 78(1-bis) of the Italian Code of Criminal Procedure, which permits written delegation of the authority to sign and file the declaration, unless the person concerned has expressed a contrary intention.

In the case examined, the trial court had excluded the civil party because substitute counsel appearing at the hearing did not hold a special power of attorney.

The Supreme Court quashed the order without remittal, finding it procedurally aberrant: the order had definitively prevented the civil party’s participation despite the declaration having already been filed.

The judgment thus distinguishes the authority to join proceedings as a civil party from substitute counsel’s subsequent attendance at the hearing and confirms that filing may be specifically delegated. This power derives from Article 78(1-bis), rather than from a generic appointment as substitute counsel alone.

Source: Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Case Law Review, November 2025, page 77, Rv. 288914-01.