Family Law and Divorce Lawyer in Milan

Family law is a central part of the work of the firm founded by Avv. Marco Bianucci. We assist people going through separation or divorce, parents who need to organise their children’s lives after a relationship ends, and families who need protection in personal and financial matters.

We handle these matters as a team of lawyers with many years’ experience in family law. We combine knowledge of the rules with practical experience of proceedings and negotiation: every decision must be legally sound, understandable and workable in everyday life.

Our work covers separation and divorce, by agreement or contested, custody and maintenance of children, protection of the financially weaker spouse, allocation of the family home, protection from abuse and child abduction, including international cases. We also handle civil unions, cohabitation and adoption, with particular experience in stepchild adoption, and the division of property when a relationship ends. In every engagement we set objectives, priorities and tools only after reconstructing the family’s situation.

In Italian, «matrimonialista», «divorzista» and «familiarista» are common descriptions of a lawyer’s work, not three separate professions: they refer to the lawyer who handles the breakdown of a marriage, its dissolution and, more generally, family relationships, including those of unmarried parents. Where the matter also concerns a partner’s rights after a death, we coordinate with our inheritance law practice.

We start from a practical observation: a couple who separate often reach a lawyer when their relationship is already deeply damaged. Our work must allow the separation to be dealt with without needlessly deepening that rift. Defending someone requires firmness, but also the ability to weigh the consequences of words, requests and court applications.

Where there are children, this responsibility takes on further meaning: even as adults they will need to be able to rely on both parents, without having to choose a side. That is why, when it is possible and safe, we treat respectful communication between the parents as a concrete goal of our work.

We therefore seek clear, balanced and workable agreements. We prepare negotiations with documents, reasoned proposals and a realistic assessment of rights and obligations, and we deal with the details that can turn into new sources of conflict: holidays, handovers, expenses, communication about school and medical decisions. The quality of an agreement is measured partly by whether it still works after it is signed.

When the court has to decide

In some situations an agreement cannot be reached or does not offer adequate protection. A persistent refusal to take on responsibilities, concealed resources or disproportionate financial demands can make court proceedings necessary: we then ask the court to establish the facts and set terms justified by the actual needs and means of the people involved.

Even during proceedings we consider agreed solutions, possibly with the court’s help, if they genuinely protect the client and the children. Where there is violence, abuse or coercive behaviour, however, the person’s protection comes first: preserving a parental relationship can never mean exposing someone to danger or asking them to accept domination.

A family lawyer must know the substantive law, the rules of procedure and how case law is developing. They must be able to read a financial situation, identify the relevant evidence, negotiate and act promptly when an urgent measure is needed. Experience also helps to spot the problems that an apparently complete agreement may leave unresolved.

Equally necessary are careful listening, confidentiality and independent judgement. We explain which claims are well founded and which would lead to pointless litigation; we distinguish the pain of the relationship from the legally relevant facts, without underestimating the former or automatically turning it into court applications.

We work as a close-knit team, sharing research and coordinating the work on each case. Where the matter requires it, we instruct party-appointed experts – psychologists, child neuropsychiatrists, educational specialists – chosen for the issues to be examined. If the court appoints its own expert (consulenza tecnica d’ufficio), the party’s expert takes part in the assessment, submits observations and checks its method and conclusions.

We keep the roles separate: technical assessment requires scientific expertise, legal assistance remains with the lawyers and decisions are for the court. Our team also includes a family pedagogist, who gives parents educational support – telling the children about the separation, organising life between two homes, dealing with school – in a role distinct from legal representation, psychotherapy, family mediation and court expert assessments.

It helps to distinguish the two steps. Legal separation does not end the marriage: it changes the relationship between the spouses and allows them to live apart. Divorce dissolves a civil marriage or ends the civil effects of a religious marriage registered in Italy. In both cases the duties towards the children remain.

Separation by agreement

When the spouses reach an agreement, we draft the terms of the separation: the children’s arrangements, financial contributions, the family home and other property matters. Before the agreement is formalised we check that it is complete, sustainable and lawful.

Before the court we file a joint application, signed by the spouses as well, with the required documents, including information on income and assets for the last three years (art. 473-bis.51 of the Code of Civil Procedure, c.p.c.). The court reviews the terms, paying particular attention to the children’s interests: if the agreement conflicts with them, it indicates the changes needed and, without a suitable solution, rejects the application. A private agreement between the spouses does not by itself give them the status of legally separated (art. 158 of the Civil Code, c.c.).

Divorce on a joint application

What is commonly called an agreed divorce requires a joint application and agreement on the terms. We review the financial and parenting arrangements again, because the separation agreement does not automatically determine the terms of the divorce.

Where divorce is based on separation, the separation must have lasted without interruption for at least six months if it was by agreement, or twelve if it was contested. The period runs from the spouses’ appearance before the court or, for agreements reached out of court, from the certified date of the agreement or the date of the instrument (art. 3 of Law no. 898/1970). These are minimum waiting periods for a divorce application, not guaranteed timescales for the case.

Under the conditions laid down by law, separation and divorce can be claimed in the same proceedings. This avoids two separate cases, but the divorce claim can proceed only once the waiting period has elapsed and the separation judgment has become final (art. 473-bis.49 c.p.c.).

Assisted negotiation and agreements at the town hall

We also consider assisted negotiation (negoziazione assistita), in which each party has at least one lawyer of their own (art. 6 of Decree-Law no. 132/2014). The agreement is sent to the public prosecutor: without minor or financially dependent children it receives clearance (nulla osta); otherwise it needs an authorisation based on the children’s interests. The steps needed to make it effective and update the civil status records follow.

Assisted negotiation is available even with minor children. An agreement before the civil registrar at the town hall, by contrast, is excluded where there are minor children or adult children who lack capacity, have a serious disability or are not financially self-sufficient, and it cannot include transfers of property (art. 12 of Decree-Law no. 132/2014). Which route to take depends on the issues to be settled and on whether a properly documented agreement can be built.

When there is no agreement on separation, divorce or their terms, we represent the client in contested proceedings. The other spouse’s refusal is not a veto: separation can be sought when events make continued cohabitation intolerable or seriously harm the children’s upbringing (art. 151 c.c.).

The application and the first measures

We reconstruct the facts, define the claims and file the application with the documents and requests for evidence; the other party can enter an appearance and put forward a defence. The financial information must be complete: tax returns, bank statements and records of assets for the last three years are attached and, where there are minor children, a parenting plan describing their school, activities, routines and daily organisation (art. 473-bis.12 c.p.c.).

If no settlement is reached at the first hearing, the court makes temporary and urgent orders on the children, the home and financial contributions (art. 473-bis.22 c.p.c.). In the event of imminent and irreparable harm we can ask for urgent orders even before the hearing (art. 473-bis.15 c.p.c.). Interim orders govern family life throughout the proceedings, which is why we prepare this stage with particular care.

Evidence, fault and the decision

If the dispute continues, the court carries out the necessary inquiries: it examines documents and may hear witnesses, order financial checks and, where needed, an expert assessment. We prepare the requests for evidence, focusing on the facts that affect the decision.

In separation proceedings we also assess any application for a finding of fault (addebito). It requires proof of a breach of marital duties and of its causal link with the breakdown of cohabitation: the mere end of the relationship is not enough. A finding of fault has specific consequences, including on maintenance, and does not decide custody of the children.

Where the claim on marital status can be decided before the others, the court pronounces the separation or divorce and the case continues on the remaining issues (art. 473-bis.22 c.p.c.). We assess any appeal and assist with the implementation of the orders. Timing depends on the issues to be established and on the court’s schedule: we discuss it with the client, without promising a set duration.

The competent court

In proceedings concerning minor children, the competent court is as a rule that of the place where they habitually reside (art. 473-bis.11 c.p.c.). Where the Milan courts have jurisdiction, we act before the Court of Milan (Tribunale di Milano) and, on appeal, the Milan Court of Appeal; the location of our office does not by itself determine the competent court.

The end of cohabitation does not require a legal separation. Where there are children, however, their lives need to be organised: parental responsibility, habitual residence, time with each parent, maintenance, expenses and use of the family home, where the conditions are met.

Children’s rights do not depend on their parents’ marriage. We help parents reach an agreement and formalise it through the procedures provided by law – a joint application to the court or assisted negotiation (art. 6, paragraph 1-bis, of Decree-Law no. 132/2014) – and, without agreement, we ask the court to regulate the arrangements and make the necessary orders. Where a child has not been acknowledged by a parent, we also consider a court declaration of paternity or maternity (art. 269 c.c.).

We work on practical points: who takes the children where, how festivities and holidays are organised, what information is shared and how important decisions are made. Clear arrangements help prevent disputes that would otherwise keep recurring after the relationship has ended.

In custody matters we start from the child’s needs, their history and the abilities each parent has actually shown. Custody (affidamento) concerns the exercise of parental responsibility; where the child mainly lives (collocamento) and the time spent with each parent concern the organisation of daily life: related, but distinct issues.

The court considers joint custody first, and decisions of major importance – education, upbringing, health, habitual residence – are taken by both parents together (art. 337-ter c.c.). Joint custody does not mean half the time with each parent, nor does it rule out a maintenance payment. Equal time-sharing is not automatic either: the schedule must reflect the child’s age, school, distances and routines.

Sole custody requires a reasoned order finding that custody with the other parent would be contrary to the child’s interests (art. 337-quater c.c.): general reference to the parents’ conflict is not enough. Even then, unless the court decides otherwise, major decisions remain with both parents. What practice calls «super-exclusive» custody is a reinforced form in which the court also gives the custodial parent those major decisions; it is not the same as removing parental responsibility and does not cancel the child’s relationship with the other parent.

A child aged twelve or over, or younger if capable of discernment, has the right to be heard in proceedings that concern them (art. 473-bis.4 c.p.c.). The court may decline to hear the child only by a reasoned decision, for example if it would be against the child’s interests. Hearing the child lets the court understand their experience; it does not make the child responsible for choosing between the parents.

Both parents contribute to their children’s maintenance in proportion to their means, taking account of the work of caring for them. To make or assess a proposal we look at the child’s current needs, the standard of living enjoyed while the family lived together, the time spent with each parent, both parents’ financial situation and the economic value of domestic and care work (art. 337-ter c.c.): the amount is not a fixed percentage of a salary, and there are no binding national tables.

We set out which costs are covered by the monthly payment and how extraordinary expenses – medical, school, sports – are shared, when prior agreement is needed and how they are documented and reimbursed: vague wording leaves open a conflict that will keep returning. Turning eighteen does not automatically end maintenance: for an adult child who is not financially independent the court may order a periodic payment, made as a rule directly to the child (art. 337-septies c.c.), but the obligation does not continue indefinitely where the child unjustifiably makes no effort to become independent.

If maintenance is not paid, we assess the tools for recovering it and securing future payments; non-payment does not justify cutting off the child’s contact with the other parent. Unless the parents or the court have set a different measure, child maintenance is adjusted automatically in line with the ISTAT price indices (art. 337-ter c.c.).

Protecting the financially weaker spouse requires careful analysis: maintenance during separation and the allowance after divorce have different requirements and purposes, and a difference in income alone does not show whether an allowance is due, or how much.

During separation the marriage still exists. Art. 156 c.c. provides for maintenance in favour of the spouse who was not found at fault for the separation and who lacks adequate income of their own, taking into account the circumstances and the other spouse’s income. We look at the couple’s standard of living during the marriage, actual resources and the real capacity to earn: a merely theoretical job opportunity is not the same as a salary, and the assessment concerns both spouses, without assumptions based on gender.

On divorce, art. 5 of Law no. 898/1970 applies. The divorce allowance may serve a support function and, where the conditions are met, a compensatory one: what the spouse contributed to family life and to building up the common assets or those of the other spouse, through choices that meant giving up career or income, also counts. It does not serve to restore the previous standard of living, and an award made on separation does not guarantee the same outcome on divorce.

We act both for people seeking justified support and for those defending against disproportionate claims, with a documented reconstruction of needs and of the resources actually available: on that basis we seek an agreement or ask the court to decide.

The family home is allocated primarily in the children’s interest in keeping their living environment (art. 337-sexies c.c.), including adult children who are not yet independent and still live there. Allocation gives a right to live in the home and does not transfer ownership; it is not a benefit automatically due to the financially weaker partner: where there are no children to protect, housing is governed by the other applicable rules (ownership, lease, loan for use).

We examine the title to the home, the mortgage and the running costs. An allocation order does not change the obligations towards the bank and, once registered, can be relied on against third parties; the law provides that the right ends if the person living there no longer lives there permanently, cohabits with a new partner or remarries, but any revocation must be assessed in the light of the children’s interests. If circumstances change, we consider an application to vary the order.

The end of a relationship does not end joint ownership. If there is no agreement on selling the home, buying out the other owner’s share or using the property, we assist the client in the compulsory civil mediation required for disputes on the division of property (art. 5 of Legislative Decree no. 28/2010), which is distinct from family mediation, and then, if necessary, in court proceedings: each co-owner can ask for the co-ownership to be dissolved (art. 1111 c.c.), and the other co-owner’s refusal is not a veto. If the property cannot conveniently be divided, it may be allotted to one of the two, who pays the other the value of their share, or sold; we look at the costs, the mortgage and the consequences of each solution from the outset.

Where there is violence, threats, coercive control or abuse, we organise our assistance around the person’s safety, dignity and freedom. In immediate danger, call 112; 1522, the Italian public helpline against violence and stalking, offers support and referral to anti-violence centres.

Civil protection orders against family abuse (arts. 473-bis.69 et seq. c.p.c.) allow the court, where the conduct of a spouse or other cohabitant seriously harms the other’s physical or psychological integrity or freedom, to order the conduct to stop and the abuser to leave the home, and not to approach the places the protected person usually frequents, such as their workplace or the children’s school. The order may also involve social services and, where those left in the home are without adequate means, a periodic payment, which the court may order the employer to pay directly. It lasts for up to one year and can be extended only for serious reasons; it can be granted even after cohabitation has ended, and does not require a prior criminal complaint.

We coordinate civil measures with our criminal law practice, because the two routes have their own requirements, and we immediately address the children’s contact arrangements so that they are compatible with their protection. Where abuse or violence is alleged or emerges in the proceedings, family mediation cannot be started (art. 473-bis.43 c.p.c.): the search for an agreement must not delay the measures needed. Any claim for compensation is assessed separately, in our work on compensation for damage.

We assist in cases of child abduction within Italy and where a child is wrongfully taken or kept abroad, including after a holiday that was originally agreed. We act to identify urgent measures, start the procedures for the child’s return and coordinate family-law protection with criminal-law protection.

The main instrument is the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the civil aspects of international child abduction, implemented in Italy by Law no. 64/1994. It applies to children under sixteen and aims at their prompt return to the State of their habitual residence; rights of custody may arise directly from the law, without a prior custody order. An application can be made through the Central Authorities – in Italy, the Ministry of Justice – or directly to the competent court of the State where the child is. Between EU Member States other than Denmark, Regulation (EU) 2019/1111 supplements the Convention, with accelerated time limits for each stage of the proceedings.

A return order does not decide which parent the child will live with, and time matters: if proceedings start more than a year after the abduction, the child’s settlement in the new environment may become relevant. The Convention also provides specific exceptions, such as a grave risk of harm to the child, which require rigorous proof. Abduction can also be a criminal offence (art. 574-bis of the Criminal Code), but a criminal complaint and a return application are separate routes, and neither has to wait for the other.

The terms set at the end of a separation, a divorce or proceedings concerning children can be reviewed when justified grounds arise (art. 473-bis.29 c.p.c.). Family life changes: income, health, working arrangements, the children’s needs or their degree of independence may all change.

We compare the current situation with the one considered in the earlier agreement or decision. A fall in income, a new partner or the birth of another child does not automatically reduce an allowance: its actual effect has to be assessed and documented. Likewise, a different contact schedule must reflect the child’s needs.

If there is agreement, we formalise the change through the appropriate route; otherwise we apply to the court. Applying does not suspend existing obligations: that is why we deal with a variation before unilateral decisions, such as reducing payments or permanently changing the children’s schedule, lead to new disputes.

Our assistance continues when the terms have to be applied or enforced. If an allowance is not paid or the arrangements for the children are not respected, we gather evidence of the breach and assess enforcement and recovery, including the measures the court can take for serious breaches, from a formal warning to an award of damages (art. 473-bis.39 c.p.c.).

We assist civil partners and cohabiting couples in defining their personal and financial relationship and in dealing with its end. Before proposing a solution we check which rules apply: marriage, civil union and cohabitation have different legal effects.

Law no. 76/2016 gives civil partners rights and duties, including significant financial protection. A civil union is dissolved under its own rules and does not require a prior separation: after the partners, even one of them alone, have declared before the civil registrar their wish to dissolve it, the application can be filed once three months have passed. For cohabiting partners we look at the home, joint purchases, contributions made and any cohabitation agreement, which can regulate the financial aspects of life together in the form required by law.

The end of cohabitation does not give rise to an allowance like a spouse’s: the law provides, under certain conditions, for maintenance limited to basic needs (alimenti) for a former cohabitant who is in need, for a period proportionate to the length of the cohabitation. Obligations towards children remain separate.

An important part of our work concerns adoption and the legal protection of relationships between parents and children, with experience in stepchild adoption: the adoption of a spouse’s or partner’s child by the adult who already takes a stable part in bringing the child up and has day-to-day responsibility for them.

The route is adoption in special cases under art. 44 of Law no. 184/1983: letter b) concerns the child of the adopter’s spouse, while for other family situations, including unmarried and same-sex couples, case law has accepted, where the conditions are met, the use of letter d). The court must establish that the adoption is in the child’s interest and that the adopter is suitable: the couple’s relationship alone is not enough. Before filing, we check whether the case calls for adoption or for another way of recognising the child’s legal status, also in the light of recent judgments of the Constitutional Court.

At the initial meeting we reconstruct the situation, identify any urgent issues and explain the options realistically available. We ask to see any existing agreements or court orders and the documents relevant to the matter: financial and property information and details of the children’s arrangements. If you have received a document or there is a deadline, tell us straight away.

We explain what needs to be looked into further, what outcomes can reasonably be pursued and which decisions are for the court. The meeting takes place at our office at Via Alberto da Giussano 26, Milan, or by video call, in Italian or English, including for clients living abroad; to arrange it you can contact us.

Our commitment is to build protection that is precise and aware of the consequences each choice has for the people involved: in family matters a solution must hold up legally and support the life that goes on after the proceedings.

Costs

Before taking on the engagement we provide the written estimate required by Article 13 of Law no. 247/2012, distinguishing fees, expenses and charges. There is no fixed tariff for separation or divorce: an agreed procedure involves different work from contested proceedings with hearings and experts, and if the engagement changes – negotiations that turn into litigation, new claims – we update the estimate before going ahead.

The fee parameters in Ministerial Decree no. 55/2014 apply in the cases provided by law, such as assessment of fees by a court or where no fee has been agreed: they are not a price list. People whose income is within the statutory limits may apply for legal aid at the State’s expense: we check the requirements at the first meeting.

Choosing a family lawyer

There is no ranking of family lawyers, but there are things you can check. Enrolment in the bar register can be verified on the website of the Milan Bar Association; what also matters is experience in family law, who will actually handle the case and how clearly alternatives, risks and costs are explained. Our team profiles introduce the people at the firm.