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In depth
Judicial filing is the process of submitting a citizenship application through a court in the country of origin, rather than through a consulate or ministry. It is most associated with Italy's 1948 cases.
The 1948 path allows descendants of Italian women who gave birth before January 1, 1948 to petition the civil court in Rome rather than the consulate. The Italian Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that the pre-1948 gender restriction is unconstitutional.
Judicial filing is often faster than consular filing (12-24 months vs. 24-48 months) and does not require an in-person appointment — the petitioner is represented by Italian counsel. The trade-off is higher cost (court fees, Italian legal counsel).
Related terms
A 1948 case is a judicial petition for Italian citizenship filed in the civil court of Rome, available to descendants of Italian women who gave birth before January 1, 1948.
Consular filing is the process of submitting a citizenship application through the country's consulate in the applicant's country of residence, rather than through a court or ministry in the country of origin.
Citizenship by descent (CBD) is the legal right to acquire a country's citizenship through one's ancestors — typically a parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent — without being born in that country, based on the principle of jus sanguinis.
Jus sanguinis (Latin for 'right of blood') is the principle that grants citizenship based on the citizenship of one's parents or ancestors, regardless of where one is born.
Jus soli (Latin for 'right of the soil') grants citizenship based on being born in the territory of the state, regardless of the parents' citizenship.
Dual citizenship (also called multiple citizenship) is the status of being a citizen of two or more countries simultaneously, with the rights and obligations of each.