Legal Assistance

The U.S. Embassy in Rome and the Consulates General in Milan, Florence and Naples prepared the following listings of English speaking attorneys as a service to U.S. citizens. The lists are available through the links in the box on the right.

We welcome both favorable and unfavorable comments concerning the performance of the attorneys listed. Such comments will assist us when reviewing the lists every three years.

For questions on the laws and legal system in Italy, please consult with an attorney.

Only licensed Italian attorneys are permitted to practice before the Italian courts or to give advice on Italian law. However, there are U.S. attorneys in Italy who act as legal consultants on American law.

In choosing a lawyer, the interested party may wish to take jurisdiction into account although qualified Italian attorneys may practice in provinces other than the province in which they reside. There are collection agencies in Italy; however, if litigation is involved, the collection of debts is handled by attorneys.

Service of subpoenas, orders to show cause and other judicial documents is permitted in Italy under the provisions of the Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters which is in force in Italy since January 24, 1982. U.S. consular officers are prohibited by Federal Regulations (22 CFR 92.85) from serving legal process on behalf of private litigants or appointing others to do so, except subpoenas and orders issued by Federal Courts.

For more information, please see:
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal-considerations/judicial/service-of-process.html

For information on arrests, please see the Arrest of a U.S. Citizen webpage on this website, and the Arrest or Detention of a U.S. Citizen Abroad webpage on the State Department website.

Notarial Services

See our Notarial Services webpage for all information on the services provided by the Embassy and Consulates General.