Liability of Financial Supervisors and Resolution Authority in Italy

The liability of financial supervisors under Italian law stands out for a checkered course. After decades of case law declining jurisdiction in civil liability cases against public authorities, since the mid-1990s, in a few instances, courts awarded damages to investors for losses caused by negligent supervision. In the early 2000s, the pendulum swung back. A statutory restriction made financial supervisors’ liability conditional to intent or gross negligence, and new cases withered. The national act implementing the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive extended the same restriction to the resolution authority. Following the crisis of some local banks, however, a few cases, in part still pending, were brought against financial supervisors and the resolution authority in most recent times. This chapter discusses liability standards, addresses the liability of financial supervisors in practice, and offers a comprehensive evaluation of the relevant matter.