Andrea Orlando, Justice Minister, told the Financial Times: 'We realise that those who come into contact with a system like the Italian one might get frightened and run away. But they can be calm — there are tribunals in their sector that can ensure much faster timelines than average.The Italian parliament is soon expected to discuss proposals to extend the specialist, fast track units. Six of the 12 courts deal with companies that are domiciled abroad. Italian justice has been notoriously slow but more flexibililty appears to be in the system because the number of cases in the country has been falling. The present administration, under prime minister Matteo Renzi, has encouraged some conflict prevention before cases go to court, weeding out cases that do not need to be decided by a judge. New measures include the introduction of more incentives to settle cases - such as requiring losing plaintiffs to pick up the full legal bills of both sides, rather than sharing them.

US captains of industry

The slowness of Italian justice and the habit of Italians of using the courts have put off many foreign investors. The US ambassador to Italy, John Phillips, said earlier this year: 'I cannot tell you how many CEOs of American companies have told me and stated in public that this is the number one reason they decide against investing and doing business in Italy.' Source: FT