REVIEW — 30 SEPTEMBER 2026
Evidentiary seizure: when the ten-day time limit for review starts to run
Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Section II, no. 34849/2026, filed 29 September 2026.
The decision concerns the time limit for seeking review of an evidentiary seizure and links its commencement to service or actual knowledge of the reasoned validation order.
Defence impact: the exact moment when the person concerned or defence counsel became aware of the appealable order may determine admissibility.
Reported by: Cassazione.net.
Attempted theft: standing to file a complaint and particularly minor damage
Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Section IV, no. 33988/2026, hearing 8 September 2026, filed 22 September 2026.
The Court addressed both the standing of the user of the property to file a complaint and the assessment of damage in attempted theft. For the purpose of particularly minor damage, the potential financial harm that would have resulted from completion of the offence is relevant, not only the damage actually caused by the attempt.
Source and report: Terz’ultima Fermata.
Prison cells below three square metres: presumption of inhuman treatment
Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Section I, no. 34101/2026, hearing 17 September 2026, filed 22 September 2026.
Where the individual space available in a cell is below three square metres, a presumption of a breach of Article 3 ECHR arises. It can be rebutted only where compensating factors are present together, including short duration, decent detention conditions and adequate freedom of movement outside the cell.
Source and report: Terz’ultima Fermata.
Lawyers’ strike: exclusion also applies to real precautionary measures
Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Section IV, no. 28512/2026, hearing 11 June 2026, filed 28 July 2026.
The Court confirmed that the exclusion from lawyers’ collective abstention for hearings concerning precautionary measures applies not only to personal measures but also to real measures, including preventive seizure.
Decision text: Doctrine.
Corporate liability under Decree 231: review of seizure without prior formal appearance
Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Section II, no. 20659/2026, hearing 22 May 2026, filed 4 June 2026.
A request for review of a preventive seizure filed by defence counsel appointed by the entity’s representative may be admissible even without prior formal appearance under Article 39 of Legislative Decree 231/2001 where, before or at the time of the seizure, the entity had not been served with the notice under Article 57. The Court also addresses the position of an entity that, being unaware of the 231 proceedings, acts as a third party entitled to restitution.
Defence impact: formal knowledge of the 231 proceedings and the timing of that knowledge may directly affect standing and the procedural route for review.
Source: Rivista 231.
New Article 359-ter of the Code of Criminal Procedure: real-time biometric identification using AI
In force from 30 September 2026. Legislative Decree no. 160 of 9 September 2026 introduced Article 359-ter into the Italian Code of Criminal Procedure, governing real-time remote biometric identification and localisation through AI systems.
The provision allows the use of AI systems, in the cases specified by law, to confirm identification or locate persons suspected of certain offences and to search for fugitives. The public prosecutor must seek authorisation from the investigating judge, whose reasoned order defines the geographical area, persons sought and duration of the operation. The initial duration may not exceed fifteen days, without prejudice to reasoned extensions; urgent procedures and rules on inadmissibility of unlawfully obtained results are also provided.
Defence impact: the new measure creates a further field for scrutiny of evidentiary legality: statutory prerequisites, reasoning of the authorisation, spatial and temporal limits, emergency procedures and admissibility of the results.
Official source: Italian Official Gazette — Article 13, Legislative Decree 160/2026.
