Cyberbullying – Italian Ministry of Economic Developement promotes providers’ ethical code

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8 January 2014 – Good news on Cyberbullying, bad news for cyberbullies.

The Italian Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico has published a consultation document that is the initial draft version of a code of ethics for Service Providers aiming at protecting young people from cyberbullying. “Cyberbullying is the use of Information Technology to harm or harass other people in a deliberate, repeated, and hostile manner” (cfr Wikipedia), and is one of the worrying sides of the present decay of public speech over Internet.

The document establishes a Committee made of experts taken from the stakeholders of the project : institutions (The Ministry, Agcom, Polizia postale e delle comunicazioni, Autorità per la privacy, Garante per l’infanzia e Comitato media e minori), industrial syndication (Confindustria digitale, Assoprovider ecc.) and operators(Google, Microsoft ecc.) and a principle of easy and quick reaction from qualified personnel in case of cyberbullying episodes.

This initiative is highly welcome, as this phenomenon is increasingly scary. Since 2008, 41 teenagers committed suicide admittedly due to mobbing and stalking episodes occurred while living a normal web-life (see enquiry –> here). It is hard to decide whether these (unjustifiable) deaths are “more” or “less” tragic than the effects this type of “mala educacion” is inducing in adults’ behaviours, such as the recent political mobbing cases emerged on Mr Bersani’s health conditions, or than plain religious censorship (as happened in Iran yesterday –>here).

What SciFi tells us, again and again.

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I propose you this reflection, published in November 2012 -an Eon ago, if you want- on the “Indice dei Libri del mese” (an important literary review published in Italy) by Edoardo Villata -“La guerra di Star Trek“.

It draws an (easy?) parallel between a Star Trek Episode (the author does not quote but it refers to “A Taste of Armageddon” by Robert Hamner e Gene L. Coon, 1967) and the casualties produced by the economic crisis we’re still crawling in.

And, among the casualties, the works of art and the elements of culture that disappear because of the budget cuts. Or by the choices of budget cuts done with a warfare mindset.

Now, 1967 Star Trek was good Science Fiction, of course was no economic science. However, it included a quality that lacks to so many future-tellers of today: common sense, memory, in a word, humanity.

That’s why Science Fiction told about “future”, while Standard & Poors publications talk about “outlook”. Imagining might be very scary, if you take imagination seriously.

Europe and Privacy – “Article 29 Working Party” releases Working plan 2014-2015

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The Art. 29 WP has released on 3 dec. 2013 its 2-years working plan for years 2014-2015. In the document (available —> here), we can read that “The Working Party’s goal for the 2014-2015 period is to ensure a coherent and correct application of the current legal framework and to continue to prepare for the future legal framework”.

The stress placed on the current framework, while the future one is left on the background, gives room to the assumption that work around the reformed Data Protection Regulation, that shall replace the national legal framework, might again be facing some hard times. However, we might be pessimistic…

Article 29 Working Party is the European consultative body established to study improved ways of addressing privacy principles in European legislation. It is made of representatives of the Data Protection authorities of all Member States plus a representative from the Eu Data Protection Supervisor and a member of the EU Commission.

The Article 29 Data Protection Working Party was set up under the Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data. It has advisory status and acts independently. (quoted from DG Justice website)

 

Italian Data Protection Authority renews general authorizations for sensitive data

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The Italian Data Protection Authority (so called “Garante per la Privacy”) has renewed the set of general authorizations for sensitive and judiciary data handling, with effect from 1/1/2014.

The set, made presently of nine general clearance orders (normally ranging from 1 to 9 -this year from 1/2013 to 9/2013-), is reviewed on a yearly basis, and regularly updated.

The new set is available on the authority’s official website (–> here)

Prosecutor Mr Gian Carlo Caselli retires – his examples stays

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The Chief Prosecutor (Procuratore capo della Repubblica) of Torino, Mr Gian Carlo Caselli, retires from office at 75. (–> news)

This excellent magistrate, who served as Prosecutor for over 40 years, has been a touchstone of commitment to justice and the law. After being a leading figure in the fight against internal left-wing terrorism during the late 70s and early 80s, he was committed, together with Mr Falcone and Mr Borsellino, in the struggle against the Mafia and ‘Ndrangheta, playing a protagonist’ role in the inquiries against mob chiefs.

In retiring, he leaves behind an entire generation of law students, attorneys and judges (or at least a good portion of a generation) who got inspired by his independence, commitment, good doctrine and integrity.

The news spread in the papers early in november, but his decision becomes operational as of January 1st.

Italians in general (and lawyers in particular) should thank Mr Caselli for his constant commitment to let this Country remain a good place to live. I, personally, do so.

Enigma codebreaker Alan Turing receives royal pardon (from “The Guardian”)

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Alan Turing, convicted of gross indecency in 1952 after admitting a sexual relationship with a man, has been granted a posthumous royal pardon 59 years after his death.

The famous mathematician was the person who had broken the Enigma Code (giving a fundamental advantage to the Allies over the Axis Powers during World War II) and had set the basis for modern computers by imagining a machine (–> the Turing Machine) that could verify -on a case by case basis- if a mathematical relation (i.e. 1+1=3) is true or false. He had achieved such results also in H.M.’s service, while directing the Bletchley Park research group during the war.

Despite these achievements, and their importance, a court established under law could not but convict him for his homosexuality, that was a crime in UK until 1967. (read the article from The Guardian –> here)

I still find amazing (and shocking) how absurd can be the result of applying legal categories to strictly personal behaviors. In this case, we have a world class hero induced to suicide by the very legal system that he contributed to defend. Luckily for the whole Western world, Mr Turing was tried after the war and not before: otherwise, the war could have had a different end, computers could have been invented somewhere else and, maybe, the Nazi Weltanschauung could have prevailed.

 

I earned the Master title as Data Protection Officer!

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And now some self promotion! I’m pleased to announce that I passed the final exam of the Master course as Data Protection Officer, held in Torino in 2013 and co-organized by the well known law firm ICT Legal Consulting and by Unolegal.

The Master title achieved – centered on te legal aspects of data protection under the present Italian legal framework (dlgs. 196/2003) and on the upcoming EU regulation on data protection, certifies my continuous commitment in the field of TMT law.

Thanks to all those who supported this effort and a special thanks to Lessicom, who was essential in helping me achieving this result!

The Italian Inventory of Real Property Authority reclassifies the value of estates

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In these last days of 2013, the Italian Uffici del Territorio dell’Agenzia delle Entrate (Real Estate division of the Inland Revenues) are performing a mass operation of reclassification of real estate values, in order to reconcile the (alleged) market value of estates to the nominal value they have for administrative purposes. (for an opinion on this matter see this article by Giuseppe Marino –>here)

Unfortunately, the operation is conducted in automatic mode. This implies that all notices of reclassification served in these days have practically the same declared motives and therefore… are potentially void.

In fact, the automatic reclassification is based only on a presumptive value. The Corte di Cassazione, on the other hand, in its decision n. 22557/2008, has clearly ruled in favour of the existence of a right of the taxpayer to receive a classification of his real estate that really reflects its value (even if lower than expected), so that he’s always allowed to prove that the value given is wrong.

Lo Stato del Delaware modifica la propria legislazione societaria… e rischia di perdere il suo primato in questo campo

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Lo Stato del Delaware, comunemente noto nel mondo del diritto commerciale per la sua avanzatissima legislazione in materia di diritto societario, rischia, secondo il professor Eric A. Chiappinelli della Texas Tech University School of Law, di perdere il suo primato.

Questo Autore, nel suo saggio in uscita (Chiappinelli, Eric A., The Underappreciated Importance of Personal Jurisdiction in Delaware’s Success (December 3, 2013). DePaul Law Review, Forthcoming) descrive l’attuale tendenza delle Corti (in particolare della Court of Chancery) dello Stato a tentare di limitare “aggressivamente” l’emorragia di cause verso altre giurisdizioni statali americane.

A quanto risulta, a seguito della recente riforma di diritto societario dello Stato, seguito alla implementazione del Sarbanes-Oxley Act anche in Delaware, tale giurisdizione sta perdendo quella caratteristica di “Lussemburgo d’America” che l’ha reso, fin dagli anni ’30 del ‘900, lo Stato di elezione per la localizzazione di grandi società negli Stati Uniti.

A seguito di tali modifiche (per cui si rinvia a inhouseblog.org) parrebbe che, poco alla volta, il diritto societario del Delaware stia perdendo le sue caratteristiche di originalità che l’hanno portato a sviluppare alcune fra le soluzioni giuridiche che maggiormente hanno influenzato il diritto societario dell’intero occidente industrializzato nel corso del novecento (prima tra tutti la regola per cui l’amministratore di società risponde delle proprie decisioni d’affari unicamente se abbia violato uno dei tre doveri di base: rispettare gli obblighi di fiducia (non agire in conflitto d’interesse), agire in buona fede ed agire in modo responsabile (duty of care): la cosiddetta “business judgement rule“).

Secondo Chiappinelli, però, la radice del problema va ricercata principalmente nella “debolezza” dei principi di giurisdizione dello Stato del Delaware (in Italia parleremmo di competenza territoriale), che consentono, in determinate circostanze, la “migrazione” delle cause. Ciò provocherebbe, sul medio termine, una riduzione della massa di decisioni in materia societaria e, di conseguenza, una perdita della capacità dei giudici del Delaware di influire sullo sviluppo del diritto societario.

Anonymous activist convicted for conspiracy by the Italian Supreme Court

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The Corte di Cassazione has confirmed the decision of conviction against Anonymous activist Mr Gianluca Preite, by its decision nr. 50626/2013. The decision affirms that defendant is in fact guilty of unlawful access to information systems (article 615-ter of the (italian) Criminal Code), in conspiracy with other activists. Defendant had attempted a defense line based on the particular ideal value of the motives behind the gesture of Mr Preite. The Court (predictably) ruled against this argument:  “more than the ideal values, the critical point is the existence of a shared plot with regard to the means to pursue the aims (for flattering and praiseworthy as they may be) that the group has assumed“.

It is however striking, in the Court’s decision, how attentively the high Judges have examined the motives. While, in fact, it is quite obvious that ideal motives, under Italian criminal law, may be such to operate as extenuating circumstances, (see, i.e. Cass. pen. 46306/2007 – published on Altalex), they cannot, per se, exclude the existence of the crime.