¹ European Commission for Democracy Through Law (Venice Commission), Opinion n. 403/2006 of 22 June 2007, Judicial Appointments, Report adopted by the Venice Commission at its 70th Plenary Session (March 16-17, 2007), <www.venice.coe.int>..>Google Scholar

² See Kosař, David, Perils of Judicial Self-Government 126 et seq. (2016), in particular at 135.Google Scholar

³ Article 83 of the Constitution of the IV French Republic (27 October 1946) established a “High Council of the Judiciary”. However, judges were not the majority.Google Scholar

⁴ Law of 14 July 1907, n. 511, Riforma dell'ordinamento giudiziario, promoted, together with Law of 27 July 1908, n. 438, Per le guarentigie e la disciplina della magistratura, by the then Minister of Justice Vittorio Emanuele Orlando. See also Royal Decree of 14 December 1921, n. 1978, Sull'ordinamento giudiziario, so-called Decree ‘Rodinò'. See Meniconi, Antonella, Storia della magistratura italiana (2013).Google Scholar

⁵ See Royal Decree of 30 December 1923, n. 2768, Testo unico delle disposizioni sull'ordinamento degli uffici giudiziari e del personale della magistratura, so-called Decree ‘Oviglio', and Royal Decree of 30 January 1941, n. 12, Ordinamento giudiziario, so-called ‘ordinamento Grandi'. See Modona, Guido Neppi, La magistratura ed il fascismo, Política del diritto 596 (1972).Google Scholar

⁶ Royal Legislative Decree of 31 May 1946, n. 511, Guarentigie della magistratura, so-called Decree ‘Togliatti'. Notice that the Decree purposely bears the same name as the 1908 Law (supra note 4), to express the reestablishment of the liberal guarantees after the Fascist authoritarianism.Google Scholar

⁷ Alessandro Pizzorusso, L'organizzazione della giustizia in Italia: La magistratura nel sistema politico e istituzionale 40 (1990).Google Scholar

⁸ See Ministero per la Costituente, Commissione per studi attinenti alla riorganizzazione dello Stato (so-called ‘Commissione Forti'), Relazione all'Assemblea Costituente, 1 Relazione della prima Sottocommissione ‘Problemi costituzionau’ 32 and 256-257 (1946), available at http://legislatureprecedenti.camera.it/.Google Scholar

⁹ Article 1: “Italy is a Democratic Republic, founded on work.//Sovereignty belongs to the people and is exercised by the people in the forms and within the limits of the Constitution.”Google Scholar

¹⁰ Article 101, para. 2 of the Italian Constitution: “Judges are subject only to the law”.Google Scholar

¹¹ So Article 106, para. 1 of the Constitution. Paras. 2 and 3 of the same Article provide for some limited exceptions.Google Scholar

¹² This understanding of the role of the judge does not necessarily lead to a mechanical conception of the judicial function: in Italian legal scholarship – as everywhere – the “creative” nature of the interpretation of law has long been acknowledged.Google Scholar

¹³ See, in particular, the remarks of the Member of the Constituent Assembly Aldo Bozzi in the afternoon session of Nov. 6, 1947, in Atti della Assemblea Costituente 1803 (1947), available at http://legislatureprecedenti.camera.it/.Google Scholar

¹⁴ Kosař, , supra note 2, at 130.Google Scholar

¹⁵ See Article 97, para. 2, of the draft Constitution elaborated by a Commission consisting of 75 Members of the Constituent Assembly and presented to the Presidency of the Constituent Assembly on 31 January 1948, available at http://legislatureprecedenti.camera.it/.Google Scholar

¹⁶ These two opposing views are well summarized in the remarks of the Member of the Constituent Assembly Giuseppe Bettiol in the afternoon session of Nov. 7, 1947, in Atti della Assemblea Costituente, supra note 13, at 1849-1850. As to the reason bringing to refusing full self-government, see Benvenuti, Simone, Magistrature, in Costituenti ombra. Altri luoghi e altre figure della cultura politica italiana nella stagione della Costituente 394 et seq. (Andrea Buratti & Maurizio Fioravanti eds., 2010).Google Scholar

¹⁷ Article 17 of Law 195 of 1958 (infra 23), as amended by Art. 4, Law 12 April 1990, n. 74. The measures concerning disciplinary responsibility are by contrast to be challenged before the Supreme Court.Google Scholar

¹⁸ See Saté, Luca Geninatti, Il ruolo costituzionale del C.S.M. e i limiti al sindacato giurisdizionale dei suoi atti (2012).Google Scholar

¹⁹ Arianna Moretti, Il Presidente della Repubblica come presidente del CSM (2011).Google Scholar

²⁰ Cf. Nicolò Zanon & Francesca Biondi, Il sistema costituzionale della magistratura 19 (2008).Google Scholar

²¹ See Article 110 of the Italian Constitution: “Without prejudice to the authority of the High Council of the Judiciary, the Minister of Justice has responsibility for the organization and functioning of those services involved with justice.” Some scholars term this a system of ‘dual governance', Francesco Contini & Antonio Cordella, ICT e giustizia: successi e fallimenti tra legami deboli e governance duale, in Soggetti smarriti. Perché innovazione e giustizia non si incontrano (quasi) mai 52, 58 (Davide Carnevali ed., 2010).Google Scholar

²² Law of 28 March 2002, n. 44, Modifiche alla legge 24 marzo 1958, n. 195, recante norme sulla costituzione e sul funzionamento del Consiglio superiore della Magistratura, established the election of ten judges by judges themselves, of four prosecutors by prosecutors, and of two magistrates of the Supreme Court.Google Scholar

²³ Law of 24 March 1958, n. 195, Norme sulla costituzione e sul funzionamento del Consiglio superiore della Magistratura. Google Scholar

²⁴ Successive laws increased the size of the secretariat from six to eight in 1967, to twelve in 1977. As mentioned, the employees’ staff witnessed an even sharper growth: twenty-four in 1967, ninety-six in 1977, up to slightly more than two-hundred in 1990.Google Scholar

²⁵ Notice that the disciplinary section enjoys wide autonomy within the CSM, for its decisions are final and not subject to review by the plenum. In its judgment of 2 February 1971, n. 12, the Constitutional Court upheld this by stating that the Constitution does not require that all competences of the CSM are to be exercised by the plenum: the legislature enjoys wide discretion in defining the CSM's organization.Google Scholar

²⁶ See Constitutional Court, judgment of 2 December 1963, n. 168.Google Scholar

²⁷ Biondi, Francesca, La responsabiutà del magistrato. Saggio di diritto costituzionale 246 (2006).Google Scholar

²⁸ On the appointment procedure, see infra C.I.1.Google Scholar

²⁹ Royal Decree of 7 January 1904, n. 2, which transferred to the newly established boards the advisory powers previously belonging to court presidents on appointment, promotions and transfers.Google Scholar

³⁰ The law gave them also the power to make proposals to the School of the newly established School of the Judiciary, thus including them in the definition of traning policies.Google Scholar

³¹ Onida, Valerio, Perché la scuola della magistratura deve essere autonoma, Questione giustizia 1 (2016).Google Scholar

³² Art. 236 of Royal Decree 12/1941 (supra note 5) and Art. 24 of Royal Legislative Decree 511/1946 (supra note 6).Google Scholar

³³ Judgment 168/1963 (supra note 26). The CSM was thus recognized as having the power to initiate the procedure independently.Google Scholar

³⁴ Constitutional Court, judgment of 9 July 1992, n. 379.Google Scholar

³⁵ Constitutional Court, judgment of 18 December 2003, n. 380.Google Scholar

³⁶ See for example the intervention of the Prosecutor of the Court of Appeal of Milan on the occasion of the opening of the judicial year in January 2016, <http://www.radioradicale.it/scheda/465315/milano-cerimonia-di-inaugurazione-dellanno-giudiziario-2016>..>Google Scholar

³⁷ Daniela Piana & Antoine Vauchez, Il Consiglio superiore della magistratura 142 et seq. (2012).Google Scholar

³⁸ This explains the battles over the election of the vice-president and those addressing the balance between the powers of the plenum and the powers of the vice-president (and of the President). Simone Benvenuti, Il Consiglio superiore della magistratura francese. Una comparazione con l'esperienza italiana 26 et seq. (2010).Google Scholar

³⁹ Di Federico, Giuseppe, Costi e implicazioni istituzionali dei recenti provvedimenti giurisdizionali e legislativi in materia di retribuzioni e pensioni dei magistrati, 35 Rivista trimestrale di diritto pubblico 331 (1985); Francesca Zannotti, La magistratura, un gruppo di pressione istituzionale. L'autodeterminazione delle retribuzioni 154 (1989).Google Scholar

⁴⁰ Di Federico, , supra note 39. This decision was justified by the concern for greater individual independence of young magistrates.Google Scholar

⁴¹ Article 23 of the Law on the CSM. In its judgment 168/1963 (supra note 26), the Constitutional Court refused to hold this provision unconstitutional; in its view, the overrepresentation of Supreme Court magistrates was a legitimate choice of the legislature, in view of the longer experience of these high magistrates.Google Scholar

⁴² For an overall analysis, Giampietro Ferri, Magistratura e potere politico, La vicenda costituzionale dei mutamenti del sistema elettorale e della composizione del consiglio superiore della magistratura (2005).Google Scholar

⁴³ Article 3 of Law 695/1975.Google Scholar

⁴⁴ Article 15 of Law 1/1981.Google Scholar

⁴⁵ Article 5 of Law 74/1990.Google Scholar

⁴⁶ The Associazione Generale dei Magistrati d'Italia (AGMI) was founded in 1909 and had over 2,000 associate members in 1914, for a judicial body comprising between 4,000 and 5,000 magistrates. It was banned in banned in 1926, Royal Decree of 16 December 1926. See Pizzorusso, supra note 7, at 55-60; Meniconi, Antonella, La storia dell'associazionismo giudiziario: alcune notazioni, 4 Questione giustizia 220, 223–4 (2015).Google Scholar

⁴⁷ Guarnieri, Carlo, Judicial Independence in Europe: Threat or Resource for Democracy, 3 Representation 347, 350 (2013). On the relevance of 'correnti' for understanding the development of the Italian judicial organisation, see Giuliani, Alessandro & Picardi, Nicola, La responsabilità del giudice 154 et seq. (1995).Google Scholar

⁴⁸ Article 23 of the Law on the CSM.Google Scholar

⁴⁹ Articles 26 and 27 of the Law on the CSM.Google Scholar

⁵⁰ Articles 7 and 9 of the Law on the CSM.Google Scholar

⁵¹ However, Article 8 of the law somehow tempered the departure from the category-based logic since candidates themselves for each category were first chosen (twice the number of members to be elected) through elections according to the old system for electing members of the CSM. Magistrates from the Supreme Court elected twelve candidates in one single constituency, while magistrates from the Court of Appeal and from the Tribunal elected eight representatives each in four different constituencies (two per constituency).Google Scholar

⁵² Article 5 of Law 695/1975. Lists needed to be signed by at least 150 voters.Google Scholar

⁵³ Di Federico, Giuseppe, «Lottizazioni correntizie» e «politicizzazione» del C.S.M.: quali rimedi?, 10 Quaderni costituzionali 279, 284 & 289 et seq. (1990); Guarnieri, Carlo, Origini, problemi e sviluppo delle «correnti giudiziarie»', in I magistrati e le correnti. Alla ricerca dell'indipendenza da se stessi 17, 18-20 (Antonio Beveri ed., 2008).Google Scholar

⁵⁴ The four territorial districts were determined by unifying courts of appeal through drawing lots. Only the two Supreme Court magistrates were elected within a national district. The number of signatures required to support a list of candidates was 50 for the election of the two Supreme Court magistrates within the national district and 30 for the election of other representatives within the four territorial districts. See Articles 6 and 7 of Law 74/1990.Google Scholar

⁵⁵ Pizzorusso, supra note 7, at 43.Google Scholar

⁵⁶ This law also provides that, besides the two magistrates of the Court of Cassazione four seats are reserved for prosecutors and ten seats for judges, Article 5 of Law 44/2002.Google Scholar

⁵⁷ Article 7 of Law 44/2002. Single candidacies need the support of a minimum of 25 magistrates and a maximum of 50 magistrates.Google Scholar

⁵⁸ Article 5 of Law 44/2002.Google Scholar

⁵⁹ Among the objectives of the law was the alignment of the election of the judicial members of the council to the system for the election of members of Parliament, and thus to achieve systematic coherence with provisions regulating the formation of the legislative branch. However, it is difficult to see why the CSM's judicial members’ electoral system needed fine-tuning to make it correspond with the electoral system of Parliament, as the two bodies had different goals. In connection to this, the law aimed at facilitating the formation of stable majorities within the CSM, but, again, this objective was open to criticism, as there is no real need for stable majorities in the CSM as there is in parliamentary bodies.Google Scholar

⁶⁰ Recorded interview by Simone Benvenuti with a member of the CSM, 17 May 2018.Google Scholar

⁶¹ tential trickledown effects on output independence.Google Scholar

⁶² Ridola, Paolo, La formazione dell'ordine del giorno fra poteri presidenziali e poteri dell'Assemblea, in Magistratura, CSM e principi costituzionali 66 (Beniamino Caravita ed., 1994).Google Scholar

⁶³ Kosař, , supra note 2, at 410.Google Scholar

⁶⁴ The important individual guarantees for judges established by the Constitution to that effect also witness that the problem of independence was understood in much broader terms than JSG. For example, the Constitution set out the principle that “Judges are subject only to the law” (Article 101), the principle of the legal judge (“giudice naturale”, Article 25.1), the rule of irrevocability (Article 107.1) and the equality of all judges (Article 107.3).Google Scholar

⁶⁵ Contini, Francesco & Mohr, Richard, Reconciling independence and accountability of judicial systems, 2 Utrecht Law Review 26 (2007); Piana, Daniela, Judicial Accountabilities in New Europe: From Rule of Law to Quality of Justice (2010); Kosař, , supra note 2, at 14.Google Scholar

⁶⁶ CCJE, Opinion No. 18 (2015), The position of the judiciary and its relation with the other powers of state in a modern democracy. The Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE) is an advisory body of the Council of Europe on issues relating to the independence, impartiality and competence of judges. It is composed exclusively of judges.Google Scholar

⁶⁷ See Article 97 of the Italian Constitution. However, Article 28 provides that any civil servant is liable under criminal, civil and administrative law for acts in breach of individual rights.Google Scholar

⁶⁸ On the conceptualization of judicial accountability for the purpose of this article, see Benvenuti, Simone, The Politics of Judicial Accountability in Italy: Shifting the Balance, 14 European Constitutional Law Review 369 (2018).Google Scholar

⁶⁹ Benvenuti, supra note 16, at 385.Google Scholar

⁷⁰ See Volpe, Giuseppe, Sulla responsabilità politica dei giudici, in Scritti in onore di Costantino Mortati. Aspetti E tendenze del diritto costltuzionale 809(Egidio Tosato ed., 1977); Cappelletti, Mauro, Who Watches the Watchmen? A Comparative Study on Judicial Responsibility, 1 American Journal of Comparative Law 1 (1983); Vigoriti, Vincenzo, La responsabilità del giudice (1984), and literature referred to. More recently, see Biondi, supra note 27, and La responsabilità dei magistrati (Mauro Volpi ed., 2008).Google Scholar

⁷¹ Bovens, Mark, Two Concepts of Accountability: Accountability as a Virtue and as a Mechanism, 33 West European Politics 946 (2010); Vauchez, Antoine, L'institution judiciaire remotivée. Le processus d'institutionnalisation d'une “nouvelle justice” en Italie (1960-2000) (2004); Piana & Vauchez, supra note 37, at 129 et seq.Google Scholar

⁷² This is known as system of ‘open positions’ ('ruoli aperti'), Pizzorusso, supra note 7, at 45-50.Google Scholar

⁷³ Following the judgment of the Constitutional Court of 19 May 1982, n. 86, it was not possible to be appointed as a judge of cassation without exercising the relevant functions, but magistrates were qualified for appointment and relative salary benefits were preserved.Google Scholar

⁷⁴ Thirteen years’ experience is required to become a judge of appeal and 28 years to become a judge of cassation. Law no. 392 of 24 May 1951, Law no. 570 of 25 July 1966 and Law no. 831 of 20 December 1973. Evaluation is a task of local judicial councils. It is based on observations by the court president and is subsequently approved by the CSM, see Article 3 of Law no. 570 of 25 July 1966.Google Scholar

⁷⁵ Di Federico, Giuseppe, Statuto, carriera e indipendenza dei magistrati ordinari in Italia, 1 Rivista trimestrale di diritto e procedura civile 1577, 1589 (1973); see also Gaetano Silvestri, Giustizia e giudici nel sistema costituzionale 162-169 (1997); Guarnieri, supra note 47, at 350. This is a notable example of simulated judicial accountability, Kosař, supra note 2, at 70.Google Scholar

⁷⁶ Guarnieri, supra note 47.Google Scholar

⁷⁷ Kosař, , supra note 2, at 70.Google Scholar

⁷⁸ Legislative Decree n. 160 of 5 April 2006, and Law no. 111 of 30 July 2007, n. 111.Google Scholar

⁷⁹ Article 2 of Law no. 111/2007, amending Article 11 of Legislative Decree n. 160/2006.Google Scholar

⁸⁰ See Article 12, subsection 13, of Legislative Decree n. 160 of 5 April 2006.Google Scholar

⁸¹ Valutazioni dal 2008 al 2016 – Dettaglio per esito http://www.csm.it/documents/21768/137951/Valutazioni/06706f39-ce6a-432c-bea2-45726330b9a4.Google Scholar

⁸² Castelli, Claudio, Commissione ministeriale per l'ordinamento giudiziario: più di un semplice maquillage, non ancora un progetto. Il punto di vista di un partecipante ai lavori, Questione giustizia (2016). The activity of judicial boards in other areas, where non-judges indeed participate, increased both in quantity and in quality. Gianluca Grasso, Note introduttive, in Gianluca Grasso (ed.), Dieci anni di riforme dell'ordinamento giudiziario, V Foro italiano 158 (2016).Google Scholar

⁸³ Grasso, supra note 82, at 223 et seq. and cited bibliography. The CSM approved new rules in 2015 (Testo Unico sulla dirigenza giudiziaria) and new rules of procedure in September 2016. Their impact is still difficult to assess.Google Scholar

⁸⁴ Vietti, Michele, L'ordinamento giudiziario 60 (2003).Google Scholar

⁸⁵ Judgment of 2 February 1971, n. 12.Google Scholar

⁸⁶ Article 17 of the law on the CSM.Google Scholar

⁸⁷ In this decision, the rule of in camera hearings and the diminished role of the advocate were at stake, among other matters; notwithstanding its clear position, the Court considered these two constitutional questions unfounded.Google Scholar

⁸⁸ Article 1 of law 74/1990, which maintains the possibility of exceptions.Google Scholar

⁸⁹ This decree was adopted before the Constitution and envisaged a disciplinary court and disciplinary tribunals, jurisdictional in character, thus reforming the previous system based on a politico-bureaucratic understanding of disciplinary responsibility, Vietti, supra note 84, at 52.Google Scholar

⁹⁰ The Constitutional Court, however, upheld this provision, despite its vagueness: see judgment of 8 June 1981, n. 100.Google Scholar

⁹¹ Zanon & Biondi, supra note 20, at 282.Google Scholar

⁹² The plenary of the CSM also contributed to define disciplinary offences by resorting to its ‘para-normative’ powers.Google Scholar

⁹³ Vietti, supra note 84, at 54 et seq. Hence, while the disciplinary system is no longer based on the old bureaucratic approach, many commentators have underlined its practical shortcomings, Zanon & Biondi, supra note 20, at 328.Google Scholar

⁹⁴ ECtHR 2 August 2001, case no. 37119/97 N.F. v. Italy. Article 1(1) and 2(6-7) of Law no. 150/2005 and Articles 2, 3 and 4 of Legislative decree n. 109/2006 introduced three categories of disciplinary offences depending on whether they have been committed during or outside the exercise of the judicial functions and whether they result from committing a crime.Google Scholar

⁹⁵ See notably Article 2(6) of Law no. 150/2005 and Articles 1-4, 14, and 17 of Legislative Decree n. 106/2006.Google Scholar

⁹⁶ Zanon & Biondi, supra note 20, at 317-321; Giuliani & Picardi, supra note 47, at 149. ‘Legalisation’ of accountability implies the reliance on stricter legal standards, Kosař, supra note 2, at 38.Google Scholar

⁹⁷ Castelli, supra note 82. Data show that between 2008 and 2012 on average 150 disciplinary proceedings have been initiated each year, 25% on the initiative of the MJ and a large share in relation to delays. Disciplinary sanctions are imposed in slightly more than 10% of the cases.Google Scholar

⁹⁸ Between 2008 and 2012 31% of disciplinary proceedings on average (50 per year on a total of 157) were instigated by the Ministry. Claudio Castelli, Un sistema disciplinare da correggere, liberiamo i magistrati dalla paura, Questione giustizia (2013).Google Scholar

⁹⁹ Procura Generale della Corte Suprema di Cassazione, Statistiche relative all'attività della Procura generale in materia disciplinare, https://www.csm.it/documents/21768/2100643/intervento+procuratore+generale+inaugurazione+anno+giudiziario+2017+seconda+parte.pdf/4a374305-a855-3990-1eb4-c1a32d2971de; Procura Generale della Corte Suprema di Cassazione, Statistiche relative all'attività della Procura Generale in materia disciplinare http://www.cortedicassazione.it/cassazioneresources/resources/cms/documents/Relazione_statistica_proc_gen.pdf. See also Di Amato, Sergio, La responsabilità disciplinare dei magistrati: gli illeciti, le sanzioni (2013).Google Scholar

¹⁰⁰ Zanon, Nicolò, 'Sei gradi di separazione': ovvero come assicurare la terzietà della sezione disciplinare del Consiglio superiore della magistratura, Rivista AIC 1 (2012).Google Scholar

¹⁰¹ These general considerations may be further strengthened by the existence of powers able to enrich the quality of debate and provide more elaborate information on the state of justice, such as Article 10 opinions. Since 1970, the CSM also publishes reports on the state of justice.Google Scholar

¹⁰² See for example http://www.cortedicassazione.it/corte-di-cassazione/it/inaugurazioni_anno_giudiziario.page.Google Scholar

¹⁰³ In a recent book, a former member of the Council (a judge) reported the existence of a confidential record of the secretariat accessible only to councillors, which includes clear evidence of such informal agreements.Google Scholar

¹⁰⁴ In 2011, a CSM decision also ensured greater publicity of appointment procedures. Yet, information is only accessible to judges and prosecutors through an intranet, decision of 1^st June 2011.Google Scholar

¹⁰⁵ Grasso, supra note 82.Google Scholar

¹⁰⁶ Grasso, supra note 82Google Scholar

¹⁰⁷ While it should include statistics shared with the Ministry of Justice and disciplinary jurisprudence, these contents still wait to be updated, and no English version of the website is foreseen.Google Scholar

¹⁰⁸ Article 24(1) of the Italian Constitution: “Anyone may bring cases before a court of law in order to protect their rights under civil and administrative law”; Article 113(1) of the Italian Constitution: “The judicial safeguarding of rights and legitimate interests before the bodies of ordinary or administrative justice is always permitted against acts of the public administration.” As mentioned in Section B., however, the Italian legal scholarship does not agree on considering the CSM, which is a constitutional body, as part of the public administration.Google Scholar

¹⁰⁹ CSM, Ufficio statistico – Conferimento delle funzioni direttive e semidirettive (V Commissione), September 2017, 11-15, https://www.csm.it/documents/21768/137951/Conferimenti+set+2017/bdb9ac90-4c97-f683-2d8d-029eed28b185.Google Scholar

¹¹⁰ Adam Blisa & David Kosař, Court Presidents: The Missing Piece in the Puzzle of Judicial Governance, in this issue.Google Scholar

¹¹¹ Supra note 26, translation by the authors.Google Scholar

¹¹² It has been observed that the transfer of powers in the field of training from the CSM to the autonomous High School for the Judiciary involved two effects: the weakening of practical, in-court training on one hand, and the “technicization” of knowledge coupled with the detachment of trainees, especially the new ones, from the main self-governing authority, on the other.Google Scholar