VPB studio legale associato authors the Italy chapter of GAR – The European Arbitration Review 2027
We are pleased to announce the publication of GAR – The European Arbitration Review 2027, free to view on the Global Arbitration Review website. The Italy chapter is authored by Edoardo Vassallo and Camilla Nicoletti.
Global Arbitration Review is the go-to international resource for arbitration practitioners, and each year the European Arbitration Review tracks the key developments across Europe’s major jurisdictions. In addition to Italy, the 2027 edition includes updates on:
- Germany;
- Greece;
- Lithuania;
- Poland;
- Serbia;
- Spain;
- Ukraine,
as well as an analysis of Turkey and of intra-EU investment arbitration after the Achmea case.
We are proud to author the Italy chapter, a concrete recognition of the firm’s commitment to arbitration and international dispute resolution.
What the chapter covers
The chapter starts from the Cartabia Reform (Legislative Decree No. 149 of 10 October 2022) and shows how recent reforms have made arbitration in Italy stronger, with a focus on interim relief and safeguards for the independence and impartiality of arbitral tribunals – key issues for companies, investors and foreign parties choosing Italy as their seat or seeking to enforce their rights there.
On interim relief, new Article 818 of the Code of Civil Procedure grants arbitrators the power to order interim measures where the parties have conferred it on them, including by reference to arbitration rules.
The new provisions also strengthen the safeguards for arbitrators’ independence and impartiality, a factor that directly affects the parties’ confidence in the proceedings.
For companies, the presence of arbitration clauses in articles of association makes the rules on corporate arbitration, now incorporated into the Code of Civil Procedure, particularly relevant: arbitrators may suspend challenged shareholder resolutions and, where the clause in the articles so provides, order other interim measures as well. This is of interest to shareholders, directors and investors, including foreign ones, who take equity stakes in Italian companies.
The chapter also examines the simplified arbitral procedure and emergency arbitration, the challenge and enforcement of awards, and the most recent case law. In several decisions, the Court of Cassation has:
- reaffirmed the central role of the adversarial principle, prohibiting “surprise” forfeitures while requiring, for an award to be annulled, an actual infringement of the right of defence;
- limited public policy to the fundamental principles of the legal system, ruling out that the mere breach of mandatory rules justifies setting aside an award;
- clarified that challenging an award for violation of the rules of law on the merits requires the parties’ express agreement, which cannot be inferred through interpretation;
- clarified the scope of the arbitration clause, distinguishing it from contractual expert determination and ruling out that the assignee of a receivable may invoke it against the assigned debtor.
The picture is completed by a number of lower-court decisions on the exequatur of foreign awards and on arbitrators’ interim powers under clauses entered into before the Reform, giving weight to the parties’ intention at the time the clauses were agreed.
Why it matters
Modern, predictable rules make a seat of arbitration more competitive. The chapter offers clients and colleagues a clear, practical guide to the latest changes – a hands-on tool for drafting arbitration clauses, shaping proceedings and securing urgent relief.
Anyone drafting an arbitration clause, for example, should know that the rules referred to may grant arbitrators interim powers and that, where those rules so provide, urgent relief may be obtained even before the tribunal is constituted – factors that bear on the choice of seat and applicable rules.
Read the chapter
Full Review: https://globalarbitrationreview.com/review/the-european-arbitration-review/2027
Our warm thanks to Global Arbitration Review for its trust and continued partnership.
This article was first published on GAR on 30 September 2026; for further in-depth analysis, please visit the GAR – The European Arbitration Review 2027.
