Introduction:
The Court of Rome recently granted Italian citizenship by descent to U.S.-born applicants whose Italian ancestor emigrated from the Province of Frosinone to the United States. The case involved a direct first-generation paternal line, the simplest genealogical structure in jure sanguinis proceedings. The Ministry of the Interior did not appear and was declared in default.
Outcome:
The Court declared all applicants Italian citizens jure sanguinis and ordered the Ministry of the Interior to carry out all required civil registry registrations and consular notifications. Legal costs were fully offset between the parties.
Challenge:
The Court confirmed that the 2025 reform, which reversed the burden of proof in citizenship proceedings, did not apply as the petition predated the new legislation. Under the prior regime, applicants need only prove descent from an Italian citizen; the burden of proving any interruption falls on the State. On access to court: while recognition should in principle occur through administrative channels, the Court found, based on the evidence filed, that the competent consular offices are in a condition of substantial paralysis due to the volume of pending requests. Unreasonable delay is legally equivalent to a denial of the right.
Action:
The Court reaffirmed that Italian citizenship, once acquired by birth, is permanent, imprescriptible, and enforceable at any time upon proof of the line of descent. Where administrative procedures are structurally inaccessible, judicial intervention is the appropriate remedy.
For the privacy of our clients, all names are fictional, and any identifying details in the judgements have been obscured.