The Impact of the UNCRC on the Italian Legal System

Although the direct effects of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on the legal system have been limited, the UNCRC is for Italy one of the most important multilateral conventions: the legislator approves almost any act on children's rights, stating that the new legal instrument is necessary in order fully to implement the UNCRC; the courts use the Convention to justify judicial interpretations which cannot be given on the sole ground of domestic law and sometimes even to substantiate interpretations against the letter of domestic law. The analysis of the conflicts between the UNCRC and Italian law identified both by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and by Italian scholars shows the ways of implementing this international instrument in Italy are not likely to change in the future: the effects on the sources of Italian law will therefore probably remain the only path through which the Convention actually contributes to the improvement of children's protection in Italy.