Just a Matter of Time? The Financial Obstacles to Access to Civil Litigation in Italy

This work aims to investigate the issue of the financial obstacles to access to the judge in the Italian legal system, focusing on civil cases in a narrow sense and excluding employment, family and succession disputes. After describing the constitutional framework, it analyses the major items of litigation costs trying to evaluate their size in light of the actual cost of living, and the cost allocation regime, characterised by a series of recent legislative interventions. Against this backdrop, the second part analyses the available public and private mechanisms to aid litigation in Italy, as well as other existing frameworks allowing cost-effective resolution of disputes. Finally, the impact of technology and artificial intelligence (AI) on access to justice is explored.