Animals elevated to legally protected value in Italy: the recent amendment of the Constitutional Chart

The European Union (EU) with article 13 of the Treaty on its functioning re-defines the legal position of animals so that they are considered sentient beings and stipulates full regard should be paid to animals’ welfare requirements (EU, 2012). While animal sentience and welfare are mainly dealt with at the EU level, they do not fall within its exclusive competence being also the responsibility of EU countries at a national level. It is only recently that Italy recognizes animal dignity by introducing the protection of animals in its Constitution with the amendment of Article 9 (Anon, 2022). The amendment places animals in a new position. They are considered no longer an ‘object’ to be protected for the sake of human wellbeing and the tool or resource of mankind but to be protected as an asset in itself. Therefore, animals become bearers of constitutional rights. Moreover, due to the particular asset of regional government in Italy, the amendments introduced by the approved constitutional law establish a safeguard clause for the application of the principle of animal protection in the special Statutes of the Regions of Sardinia, Sicily, and Valle d’Aosta and the Provinces of Trentino-Alto Adige and Friuli Venezia Giulia. Authors perform a narrative review of the article contents and underline as this innovative change represents a milestone and concrete tool toward effective protection of animals at a legislative and jurisdictional level, allowing Italy to align with other European countries that have already included environmental and animal protection in their Constitution.