Vatican
The Vatican State’s role is to support the mission of the Holy See and has juridical and legal laws especially where canon laws and Vatican laws jointly coexist. Each single case must be assessed according to international law as well as the actual law of the Vatican State. The Holy See is subject of international law and is a combination of the governing authorities of the Church. It includes the Pope, the Secretariat of State and the other offices of the Roman Curia in which, according to the Court of Cassazione of 1979, the Church and the State of the Vatican City are fully represented. All the necessary tools to face a court hearing before the Vatican tribunal, be it civil or criminal, are provided by Cristiana Arru.
Vatican Civil
Law
It is highly recommended to rely on the assistance of a qualified and experienced lawyer given the countless controversies.
The cases are many when it is necessary to call on a lawyer to face civil litigations in the Vatican: when one finds themselves which law to choose; when there are disputes in the world of work; or an employee who is in need of support to deal with the Holy See’s Labour office (ULSA) or with the Mediation and Conciliation Service or with the Retirement or Health office (FAS) or even for the disciplinary proceedings. Norms are applied taking into account an un-removable backdrop of the Social Doctrine of which the Church is head.
The Court of the Vatican City is in charge of: all actions that can be brought to trial and dealt with in the Vatican City ; all acts agreed upon by a Vatican State citizen or a foreigner authorized to live temporarily or for a given period in the Vatican City, in case he has never had residency or he has lost it; acts related to inheritance of the above; or foreigners who are not resident or even temporarily in the Vatican when dealing with: a) trials over things or personal ones related to real estate or properties in the Vatican City; b) cases rising from contracts finalized or actions occurring in the Vatican City, or whose obligations are to be performed there. (art. 48 c.p.c. Vaticano).
Civil proceedings in the Vatican City have to be dealt with according to a consolidated practice which sees the opening of a procedure as the last case, to be adopted only after every other means has failed. Cristiana Arru has over twenty years experience in the field and is perfectively capable of opening up negotiations in a structured and professional way, openly and with the aim of respecting everyone.
Vatican Criminal
Law
If someone has been questioned for having committed a crime or is charged with an offence, a technical defense is necessary, even in the Vatican.
The Vatican State’s criminal system was founded by the Codice Zanardelli and by the Italian criminal procedure of February 27, 1913 in force until June 7, 1929 when it was modified with a new law based (Patti Lateranensi) (n. LXXI, October 1, 2008) and it confirmed the criminal legislation of 1929. On July 11, 2013 the Pontificate Commission for the Vatican State approved three new important elements: the New Complementary norms related to criminal matters (Law n. VIII), Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure code changes (law no. IX), norms regarding administrative penalties. (Law no. X). Furthermore, Pope Francis has re-enforced criminal law which has also been approved in the Holy See.
To deal with a criminal case before a Vatican court, it is necessary to set up an adequate defense with the help of the lawyer and based on the legal acts. However, the method does not change, only the criteria of evaluation and the laws which are needed to be known.
