Partial Nullity Of A Specific Surety Guarantee

The Supreme Court of Cassation (“The Supreme Court”), in judgment no. 27243, dated 21 October 2024, ruled on the partial nullity of a specific surety guarantee, applying the principles set out by the United Sections of the Supreme Court in judgment no. 41994 of 30 December 2021 on the nullity of “omnibus” surety guarantees.

In summary, it is recalled that the aforementioned United Sections held that surety contracts entered into downstream of agreements declared partially null and void by the Guarantor Authority are themselves also partially null, but only in relation to those clauses that reproduce the provisions contained in the unilateral scheme constituting the prohibited agreement. On this point, it should be noted that the Bank of Italy, by Order no. 55 of 2 May 2005, had already sanctioned as anti-competitive, and therefore void, Articles 2, 6 and 8 of the contractual scheme drafted by the Italian Banking Association (ABI) for sureties guaranteeing banking