Centrale del Latte di Roma, the Court of Cassation reopens the case: Parmalat shares were in 'good faith'

Meanwhile, Ariete Fattorie Latte Sano Spa, a competitor excluded from the tender, challenged the entire operation. "A long and complex administrative litigation before the Regional Administrative Court, the Council of State and the Court of Cassation - we read - culminated in the Council of State's ruling No. 1156/2010, which declared the nullity of the contract for the sale of the shareholding stipulated between the Municipality of Rome and Cirio for violation of the shareholders' agreement, as well as the transaction in the meantime between the Municipality of Rome, Cirio, Eurolat and Parmalat".

Meanwhile, in 2005, following the collapse of Parmalat, the Court of Parma approved the composition with creditors that provided for the transfer of all the assets of Dalmata Due Srl - including the shareholding in Centrale del Latte - to the 'new' Parmalat Spa, later merged into the Lactalis Group.

This very passage became central in the civil litigation of the following years. Roma Capitale claimed ownership of the shares, arguing that the nullity of the privatisation prevented any valid transfer. Parmalat, on the other hand, invoked the non-domino purchase and, in the alternative, the right to retain the dividends received.

Rome's Court of Law and Court of Appeal had ruled in favour of the Campidoglio, excluding Parmalat's good faith and ordering the return of the shares and dividends. However, the Court of Cassation corrected the Appellate Court's approach, holding that the automatic exclusion of the good faith of the 'new' Parmalat in the 2005 passage was wrong in law.

The file is now going back to the Appellate Court to ascertain the ownership of the shares by Parmalat, which, although aware of the difficulties in running the company, intends tomaintain its shareholding, also in favour of the workers in the balance for years.

By 26 March 2026, the case will have to be resumed before the Court of Appeal, which will have to judge again, albeit in a different composition, respecting the principles of law laid down by the Supreme Court of Cassation on the legitimacy of the share purchase and the nature of dividends.

Not only that. Because there could be another chapter open: it is the one, denounced by Fabrizio Santori - leader of the League group in the Capitoline Assembly - on a process of divestment of the power plant that would have been initiated by the municipality. For Santori, selling now - after the Supreme Court ruling - would mean exposing oneself to legal risks and a probable devaluation of the company.