Service in Italy of foreign judicial and extrajudicial documents

The Hague Convention of 1965 on the service abroad of judicial and extrajudicial documents in civil or commercial matters, entered into force in Italy by Law no. 42 of Febrary 6, 1981.

The Convention shall apply in all cases, in civil or commercial matters, where there is occasion to transmit a judicial or extrajudicial document for service abroad.

This Convention shall not apply where the address of the person to be served with the document is not known.

The authority or judicial officer competent under the law of the State in which the documents originate, shall forward to the Central Authority of the State addressed a request conforming to the model indicated by Convention, without any requirement of legalisation or other equivalent formality.

The Central Authority of the State addressed shall itself serve the document or shall arrange to have it served by an appropriate agency or:

a)  by a method prescribed by its internal law for the service of documents in domestic actions upon persons who are within its territory;

b)  by a particular method requested by the applicant, unless such a method is incompatible with the law of the State addressed.

Each Contracting State shall be free to effect service of judicial documents upon persons abroad, without application of any compulsion, directly through its diplomatic or consular agents.

Any State may declare that it is opposed to such service within its territory, unless the document is to be served upon a national of the State in which the documents originate.

Where a writ of summons or an equivalent document had to be transmitted abroad for the purpose of service and the defendant has not appeared, judgment shall not be given until it is established that:

a)  the document was served by a method prescribed by the internal law of the State addressed for the service of documents in domestic actions upon persons who are within its territory, or

b)  the document was actually delivered to the defendant or to his residence by another method provided for the Convention,

and that in either of these cases the service or the delivery was effected in sufficient time to enable the defendant to defend.

Each Contracting State shall be free to declare that the judge may give judgment even if no certificate of service or delivery has been received, but when all the following conditions are fulfilled:

a) the document was transmitted by one of the methods provided for the Convention

b) a period of time of not less than six months, considered adequate by the judge in the particular case, has elapsed since the date of the transmission of the document

c) no certificate of any kind has been received, even though every reasonable effort has been made to obtain it through the competent authorities of the State addressed.

About extrajudicial documents emanating from authorities and judicial officers of a Contracting State, they may be transmitted for the purpose of service in another Contracting State by the methods and under the provisions of the Convention.

Please see also:

Taking of Evidence abroad in civil or commercial matters

European Enforcement Order

Debt Recovery in EU countries

English Speaking Lawyers in Italy

Italian Lawyers for U.S. citizens in Italy

For more information, please contact Lawyers in Rome