The United Sections confirm the ethical breach committed by a lawyer-mediator whose office is adjacent to the mediation body.

The judgment under review seizes the opportunity both to specify the purpose and scope of application of Article 55-bis, fourth canon, of the Code of Legal Ethics (now Article 62, fifth paragraph), and to provide certain clarifications regarding disciplinary proceedings within the legal profession, including with respect to the necessity (or lack thereof) of joinder of parties. The United Sections, drawing upon the already well-established interpretative framework outlined by the National Bar Council, highlight the values safeguarded by the ethical provision, confirming the appropriateness of the sanction imposed on the lawyer-mediator who practiced law in premises spatially adjacent to the mediation body he himself presided over.

Contribution by Luca Conte