Luxemburg, 01/02/2006 (Agence Europe) - Following the conclusions of the Advocate General Poiares Maduro, the Court must now deliberate and decide what is to be done on the Italian minimum scale of fees fixed for certain types of lawyers' fees, it being understood that the overall system was authorised by the Court in 2002.
With regard to fees for out-of-court services (legal consultations), in the opinion of the Advocate General, the measure fixing a scale of fees was compatible with Community competition law, provided it had been subjected to effective supervision by the State and if the court had power to derogate in some cases.
However, minimum fees for lawyers based outside Italy wishing to provide legal services in Italy constituted a restriction on the freedom to provide services and were not justified in the public interest, considered the Advocate General. Mr Poiares Maduro pointed out that in the Arduino ruling of 12 February 2002, the European Court of Justice approved the general Italian system of minimum fees which Italian lawyers had to apply to their clients.
The ruling should be delivered in the coming months. The two joint cases, called Cipolla and Macrinotte from the names of the clients unhappy with their lawyers, were the subject of a Court press release.