Professional liability and good faith: Court of Cassation Order no. 29456/2025

In the delicate balance of insurance contracts, particularly those related to medical professional liability, the principle of transparency plays a fundamental role. The insured has a duty to faithfully represent the risk that the insurer will cover. But what happens if the insured fails to disclose a critical circumstance, such as the sudden death of a patient occurring just days before the policy was signed? Order no. 29456 of November 7, 2025, issued by the Court of Cassation, addresses this very delicate scenario, outlining the boundaries of the obligation of contractual loyalty.

The principle of utmost good faith and the duty of disclosure

The ruling of the Supreme Court focuses on the concept of "uberrima bona fides" (utmost good faith), a pillar of insurance law. According to the judges of legitimacy, the insurer cannot correctly assess the risk without sincere cooperation from the policyholder. This duty does not depend on specific contractual clauses, but derives directly from Article 1892 of the Italian Civil Code.

In the case at hand, a physician, identified by the initials G. G., had taken out a "claims-made" policy only three days after the unexpected death of one of his patients, an event subsequently attributed to his gross negligence. Despite being aware of the gravity of the incident, the professional had made no mention of the fact to the insurer. The Court of Appeal had initially excluded the relevance of such conduct, but the Court of Cassation overturned that decision.

The legal principle of the Court of Cassation and legal commentary

To fully understand the scope of this decision, let us analyze the principle expressed by the judges:

Regarding damage insurance, Art. 1892 of the Civil Code is an expression of the principle that the insurance contract requires uberrima bona fides from the insured, as they are the only party aware of the circumstances that allow the insurer to assess the intensity of the risk and set the relative premium. Consequently, gross negligence in withholding information is not remedied by the omission of an express provision in the contract regarding a specific duty of disclosure, as the latter derives directly from the law and is mandatory, being dictated to guarantee the balance between premium and risk, in the interest not merely of the insurer but of the entire body of insured parties.

This principle clarifies that the obligation to disclose circumstances capable of influencing the risk assessment (the so-called "duty of disclosure") does not need to be expressly stipulated in the insurance contract. It is a mandatory legal precept aimed at protecting the synallagmatic balance of the contract. The omission of crucial information by the insured does not only harm the individual company but undermines the sustainability of the entire insurance system, which is based on the mutuality of risk.

Key points of the decision

The Court of Cassation highlighted several crucial aspects that deserve to be summarized:

• The mandatory nature of the obligation: Transparency is not a negotiable option, but a legal duty provided for by Art. 1892 of the Civil Code.
• The claims-made policy: In this type of contract, coverage operates for claims for compensation submitted during the policy's validity period. However, the awareness of a possible claim prior to signing excludes indemnifiability if it was concealed with intent or gross negligence.
• Protection of the collective: The correct determination of the premium serves to protect the body of insured parties, ensuring the stability of the company's technical reserves.

Conclusions

Order no. 29456/2025 represents an important warning for all professionals, particularly in the healthcare sector. The signing of an insurance policy cannot be used as a shield for harmful events that have already occurred or are highly probable and of which one is fully aware. Loyalty and fairness in the pre-contractual phase remain irreplaceable requirements to ensure the validity of insurance coverage and the peace of mind of one's professional activity.