Introduction:
A family of U.S. citizens submitted a claim before the Court of Naples, seeking recognition of Italian citizenship iure sanguinis through their maternal lineage. The petitioners, descendants of an Italian woman who had emigrated to the United States, challenged the long-standing legal discrimination that had historically excluded transmission of citizenship through the maternal line before 1948.
Outcome:
On December 27, 2024, the Court of Naples upheld the petition, affirming the applicants’ right to Italian citizenship. The Court ordered the Ministry of the Interior and the competent Civil Registry to proceed with all necessary registrations and communications to the
Challenge:
The key legal challenge stemmed from the historical application of Law no. 555/1912, which excluded maternal transmission of citizenship and stripped Italian women of their nationality upon marriage to foreign citizens. This discriminatory framework had long denied entire generations the right to citizenship despite their Italian origins.
Action:
The petitioners submitted a complete set of translated and apostilled civil status documents, demonstrating a clear and unbroken line of descent. The Court referenced Constitutional Court rulings no. 30/1983 and no. 87/1975, and the pivotal Supreme Court decision no. 4466/2009, to affirm the imprescriptible nature of citizenship status, even for descendants born prior to 1948.
For the privacy of our clients, all names are fictional, and any identifying details in the judgements have been obscured.