2 - The First Generation

Summary

Chapter 2 analyzes the role played by the Italian Constitutional Court. This court belongs to the first generation of constitutional courts, and as a result its configuration and role at the time when it was established were largely experimental, if not a leap in the dark. The constitutional judges, especially during the initial phase (from 1956 until the end of the 1960s) focused on the elimination of the Fascist legislation that continued to severely constrain civil, political, religious, and social liberties. In this way the court made a break with the past, as it contributed to putting an end to the continuity between Fascism and post-Fascism, at least from a legislative point of view. Indeed, with the striking down of Fascist legislation and the upholding of constitutional rights and freedoms the country experienced a transition from an “uncertain” democracy (that was the case in Italy in 1956) to a “mature” democracy. The role of the constitutional court also needs to be assessed in light of the fact that in most cases it was required to take decisions in conflict with the prevailing conservative stance of the government, the parliamentary majority, and the superior courts.