According to the Italian Cassation Court, it is unfeasible to recognise the minor nature of child support non-payment. This is due to father’s usual conduct and his persistent behaviour to fail to pay the support to his children.
The sentence No. 22523/2020, the Italian Cassation Court restated the principle according to which you cannot exclude the prosecution of an offence given its minor nature. Specifically, the offence prosecution cannot be excluded in case the father failed to fulfil its obligations and duties, failing then to pay child support for several months.
The father has failed to pay child support for 4 months while for two months the father proceeded only with a partial payment of child support. Given these circumstances the Court assessed that it was not possible to apply Art. 131 bis. Criminal Code, according to which an offence can be reduced only provided its minor nature.
The first instance Court asked for dismissing charges in relation to the violation of family care based on its minor nature. The Cassation Court refused this first interpretation given behaviours and conducts undertaken by the father. In particular, the persistent nature of such behaviours excludes the minor entity of these actions. In fact, the Court highlights Art.131 second section, which clearly exclude the minor nature of the offence in the event of persistent and habitual conducts such us continuously failing to pay child support.