Italian Supreme Court rules on public housing occupation

The Italian Supreme Court (Corte di Cassazione) has issued two significant rulings regarding the occupation of public housing. In one decision, the Third Civil Section determined that individuals who enter a public residence with the consent of the original assignee do not commit the crime of building invasion (art. 633 c.p.) if the assignment is later annulled. Instead, their continued stay is classified as a mere civil wrong of occupation without title.

This distinction has legal and financial implications: because the act is not a criminal offense, the statute of limitations for the public housing agency to claim damages is reduced from the six-year criminal period to the five-year ordinary civil period. The ruling involved a couple who moved into an apartment by agreement with an assignee, only for the assignment to be revoked because the original tenant held another public property.

In a separate ruling on the same day, the Court addressed administrative sanctions in the Lazio region. The Court confirmed that the law allows for an 80% reduction in administrative fines for those who return a public housing unit within sixty days of a request. The Court clarified that this discount also applies to those who return the property spontaneously before a formal request is issued.