In a recent ruling dated May 6, 2025, the Court of Tempio Pausania declared the inadmissibility of a precautionary arrest of a pleasure yacht. The Court held that the notification of the arrest application and the related decree, when made abroad exclusively under Article 151 of the Italian Civil Procedure Code, is ineffective in the presence of an applicable international convention.
The legal representation for the successful defendant was provided by PG Legal.
Key Legal Reasoning:
- The Court invoked Judgment No. 11966 of August 8, 2003, of the Italian Supreme Court, reaffirming the principle that:
- Where an international convention governs cross-border notifications (such as the Hague Service Convention), domestic provisions alone (e.g., Article 151 CPC) do not suffice.
- In such cases, failure to comply with the procedures outlined in the relevant international instrument leads to a finding of inexistence of the notification, and any precautionary measure based on such notice is rendered ineffective.
- As a result, the Court declared:
- The inexistence of the notification.
- The ineffectiveness of the ex parte arrest decree.
- The release of the yacht that had been placed under arrest.
In the context of the precautionary measures provided under the Italian Navigation Code, it should be also noted that the role of notification is not only relevant for the purposes of ensuring that the adversarial procedure is properly established but may also have an impact on the effectiveness of the arrest itself. In fact, it may also be interpreted as a means of enforcing the precautionary measure with regard to yacht arrests.