Italian criminal law for readers from common law systems
If you come from the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada or Australia, you will look for institutions that do not exist here. There is no arraignment, no bail, no plea of guilty, no felony and misdemeanour divide, and no free public defender. This page maps each one onto what Italian procedure has instead.
The map
| You are looking for | In Italy | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Arraignment | Udienza di convalida | Within 96 hours of arrest, on the lawfulness of the arrest and on restrictions |
| Bail | Nothing equivalent | Release depends on risk, not on money |
| Bond, bondsman | Nothing equivalent | No financial guarantee exists |
| Guilty plea | Nothing equivalent | Patteggiamento is an agreed sentence, not an admission |
| Felony and misdemeanour | Delitti and contravvenzioni | A different divide, based on the penalty type |
| Public defender | Difensore d'ufficio | Appointed, but not free |
| Jury trial | Corte d'assise, in the gravest cases only | Two professional and six lay judges sitting together |
| District attorney | Pubblico ministero | A career magistrate, not elected |
| Probation | Messa alla prova, affidamento in prova | Two different institutions |
| Expungement | Riabilitazione, non menzione | Two different mechanisms |
| Miranda warnings | Warnings under Art. 64 and 63 c.p.p. | Given before questioning, and on emergence of suspicion |
No bail, and what that really means
This is the first and largest gap. Italian law does not allow release against a payment. Restrictions are imposed only where one of three risks exists — interference with evidence, flight, or repetition of similar offences — and money removes none of them.
What exists instead is a graded scale of measures and a review before three judges within ten days. It is explained in the guide on precautionary measures. The practical consequence is that resources are better spent on producing a suitable address and evidence of ties than on anything financial.
There is no plea, and patteggiamento is not one
An Italian defendant is never asked to plead. There is no moment at which you say guilty or not guilty, and no procedural advantage attaches to admitting the facts as such.
Patteggiamento is regularly translated as plea bargaining and it works differently. The defence and the prosecutor agree on a sentence and ask the judge to impose it; the judge checks the case and may refuse. There is no admission of guilt, and the result is still a conviction with consequences that outlast the case.
The companion institution, the rito abbreviato, is stranger still to common law eyes: the defendant asks to be judged on the papers gathered by the prosecutor, without a trial, in exchange for a reduction in sentence. There is no equivalent anywhere in the common law world.
The appointed lawyer is not free
Article 97 of the Code of Criminal Procedure ensures that nobody appears without a lawyer. It does not make that lawyer free. The appointed lawyer is entitled to fees and they fall on the assisted person unless legal aid is granted on the basis of income.
This is the single most expensive misunderstanding among visitors, and it is set out in full in the note on lawyers and legal aid.
Juries, and where they exist
Most Italian criminal cases are decided by professional judges, sitting alone or in panels of three. Lay participation exists only in the corte d'assise, which hears the gravest offences and is composed of two professional judges and six lay judges deliberating together on both fact and sentence.
There is nothing resembling jury selection, no opening statements to a jury, and no verdict separate from reasons: an Italian judgment must contain written reasons, and those reasons are what an appeal attacks.
Delitti and contravvenzioni
Italian law divides offences by the penalty attached rather than by seriousness in the abstract. Delitti carry imprisonment or a fine of the higher type; contravvenzioni carry detention of the lesser type or a lower fine, and can generally be committed negligently as well as intentionally.
The practical significance is that many contravvenzioni can be extinguished by payment, which has no common law equivalent and is often the best available outcome. The routes are in Italian criminal procedure explained.
Disclosure works in reverse
There is no discovery process running through the case. Instead there is a moment: when the investigation closes, the whole file becomes available and the defence has twenty days to respond. Before that, access is limited to the acts the defence was entitled to attend.
Defence investigations exist and are regulated, but they are conducted by the defence itself rather than requested from the other side. It is a different architecture, and treating it as a slow version of discovery leads to missing the one window that matters.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an arraignment in Italy?
Not as such. The nearest equivalent is the udienza di convalida, held within 96 hours of an arrest, which addresses the lawfulness of the arrest and any restrictions.
Does Italy have felonies and misdemeanours?
No. Offences are divided into delitti and contravvenzioni according to the type of penalty attached, and many contravvenzioni can be extinguished by payment.
Do I plead guilty or not guilty?
Neither. Italian procedure has no plea. Patteggiamento is an agreed sentence that the judge may refuse, not an admission of guilt.
Will I get a jury?
Only in the corte d'assise, which hears the gravest offences with two professional and six lay judges deliberating together. Most cases are decided by professional judges.
If you are trying to understand where you stand
Translating your situation into Italian categories is usually the first useful step. First contact is free and covered by professional privilege.