‘An annual notarial recruitment scheme to help young people enter the profession’

We are currently drawing up the regulations, in consultation with the Ministries of the Economy and Justice, and in coordination with the Data Protection Authority and the Cybersecurity Authority. This will be followed by the technical rules and guidelines. The procedure will not entail any additional organisational burdens for firms, and the data to be reported will be that which is already in the public domain, contained in the files of the Revenue Agency and the Companies Register. We estimate that the new structure will be operational before the summer.

The conference has called for a review of certain corporate regulations: what are the priorities?

We need to facilitategenerational transfers: family agreements must be reformed by placing the burden of compensation on the settlor for those entitled to a statutory share who leave the business. It is necessary to encourage processes of consolidation and mergers through extraordinary transactions. I would point out that, thanks to the legal doctrine developed by the Notarial Association, heterogeneous conversions to and from companies limited by shares are now possible. Indeed, it is possible to utilise the legal mechanism of conversion even in cases where there is no subjective continuity, provided that continuity relates to the preservation of the business or the assets.

There is also a proposal to reform partnerships.

The law remains based on the Civil Code of 1942. Thanks once again to the interpretation of the Notarial Association, and to the soft law that has emerged from the grassroots, it is now permitted for the administrator to be a third party. However, much remains to be done – for example, with regard to transparency and financial statements – in order to promote the market.

Housing scheme: will the signing of contracts for social housing be made easier by the reduction in notary fees?

This is one aspect of the issue. The role of the Notary’s Office will be central in drawing up the contracts for the various parties involved and establishing the regulations for co-housing. We are willing to collaborate on rewriting the rules on social housing, which are a veritable maze. In this context, the issue of halved fees arises, based on the 2012 Ministry of Justice decree which set out the parameters for judicial liquidation.

Reform of the profession: what are the key points?

We must address young people’s disaffection with the legal professions. The competitive examination must remain the merit-based gateway to the profession, but conditions must be established to ensure it is conducted within a fixed timeframe. The written paper must prioritise ability and competence in drafting legal documents, whilst the oral examinations must include new subjects, such as professional ethics, anti-money laundering and European Union law.

How can we speed things up?

The examination board must establish, in advance, the assessment criteria, so that there is no need to provide a detailed justification for failures. Furthermore, provided certain conditions are met, it will be possible to carry out remote marking. All this should speed up the process, so that the competition can be announced every year in November, with a fixed deadline for completion. This will give young people a better chance of retaking the competition and achieving a successful outcome without having to contend with extremely long waiting times, which can jeopardise their life plans.