Newsletter Abbatescianni October 2017

~ LEGISLATION ~

Law of 4 August 2017 n. 124 - Yearly law on market and competition

Despite numerous amendments occurred in the course of the parliamentary works, the yearly law on competition has finally provided for the approval of the provisions set forth the draft bill presented by the Government in April 2015.

This piece of legislation affects the sectors of insurance, energy, professionals and postal services, as well as modifying the terms for notification of concentration operations with the purpose of granting more transparency in the market and better consumer protection.

As far as the insurance sector is concerned, the key amendments regard the following topics: Witnesses in case of incidents implying exclusively material damages: art. 135 of the Private Insurance Code has been modified through the introduction of a provision implying that, in the event of incidents implying exclusively material damages, the identification of possible witnesses should result from the initial claim or anyway from the first formal deed of the damaged party towards the insurance. Except for the findings contained in the police reports, the identification of witnesses which takes place at a later stage shall imply the inadmissibility of such form of evidence in the proceedings. Hypotheses of compulsory discount on the insurance premium: art. 132-ter of the Private Insurance Code introduces, among other provisions, one that obliges insurance companies to apply a discount on insurance users that have already installed or will install electronic devices aimed at tracking the activities of the car, commonly known as "black boxes". Tables for the determination of compensation in the event of major non-material damages: the government is obliged, within 120 days from the coming into force of the yearly law, to arrange a unique table for the entire national territory, which is going to be updated upon variation of the ISTAT index, to be used as a basis for the determination of the amount of compensation in case of non-material damage, by keeping account of the principles elaborated in the case law of the Court of Cassation. The provision specifies that, in case the physical injury implies severe consequences with regard to the individual relational dynamics of the injured person, which are ascertained and documented, the amount of compensation for the damage calculated on the basis of the table can be increased up to a maximum of 30% by the judge through a fair and justified appreciation of the conditions of the injured person. The amount of the so determined compensation is also regarded as exhaustive of the damage arising out of physical injuries.

As for the amendments in the professionals sector, instead, lawyers and notaries are the main categories to be affected. Lawyers are now allowed to set up their practice by incorporation in the forms of a company, whether personal, capital or cooperative and registered at the special registry of the competent local registry, with the sole participation of equity partners.

What remains forbidden is the participation in a partnership through trusts or by interposition.

As far as the corporate structure is concerned, the law provides that

1. the partners, by at least two thirds of the equity capital and of the voting rights, shall be lawyers enrolled at the bar, or lawyers enrolled at the bar and professionals enrolled in their respective associatons; the ceasing of such enrollment shall cause the dissolution of the partnership, and the board of the bar association at which the company is registered shall proceed with the removal of the company from the registry except for the case where the company manages to re-establish a proportional majority of professional partners within six months;

2. the majority of members of the managing body shall be lawyers; c) only partners shall be members of the managing body. The management is not...