La responsabilità dei padroni e dei committenti e l'invenzione dell'occasionalità necessaria

Article 2049 of the Italian civil code is dedicated to employers’ liability for tortious acts of their employees. According to this provi- sion employers can be held liable only for those torts committed by their employees in connection to the employment (« nell’esercizio delle incombenze a cui sono adibiti »): that means the employer can be considered liable only for those acts that are execution of the func- tions for which the employee has been employed. Since the second part of the 20th century, however, the Courts have adopted a broader view and a new paradigm, called in Italian “occasionalità necessaria”. According to this formula, the employer can be held liable when the employee has acted in the course of his employment or thanks to the employment. The author criticizes this view as too wide and far from certainty, suggesting to adopt a stricter view in accordance with the rationale of vicarious liability and general categories of civil liability.