"A chiare lettere" - Transizioni. The Italian Framework Governing State-Religion Relations before the European Court of Human Right. (Preliminary Remarks on Congrégation Chrétienne des Témoins de Jéhovah v. Italy, June 11, 2026)

Abstract

This article examines the European Court of Human Rights' judgment in Congrégation Chrétienne des Témoins de Jéhovah v. Italy (11 June 2026), in which the Court found a violation of Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, taken in conjunction with Article 9 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1, with regard to the Italian system governing relations between the State and religious denominations. After reconstructing the judgment's principal findings, the article critically analyses its underlying reasoning, focusing on its relationship with the Court's previous case law, the issues concerning the right to an effective remedy, and the significance attributed to the applicant religious community's beliefs. The analysis shows that the judgment fits within a well-established line of Strasbourg jurisprudence requiring States, whenever they choose to grant religious communities a special legal status and the related benefits, to establish a legal framework based on objective, transparent, and non- discriminatory criteria. It follows that the Italian system of intese (agreements between the State and religious denominations), characterised by broad political discretion and the absence of adequate procedural safeguards, appears incompatible with the Convention system, with potentially significant implications both for future domestic reforms and for pending and future litigation before the European Court of Human Rights