The controversial adoption by the Italian judiciary of a unified sole-judge court of first instance, which further restricts the application of the principle of collegiality and removes the distinction between the Magistrate Court and the High Court, has also resulted in the transfer of civil proceedings which were already pending in 1992, at the time the new civil procedure entered into force, to special "clearing divisions", composed of professional magistrates as well as honorary, ad hoc appointed, lay judges. The dubious skills and competence of the latter, who will frequently decide alone on disputes of noteworthy complexity, naturally constitutes a source of concern for the soundness and authority of future decisions; but in some cases the inexperience of such judges may of course also be an opportunity for one party to an action, due to the increased probability of unexpected outcomes, for example judgments in contrast to accepted case law, or to evidence which would normally
