Ricerc@Sapienza

The paper discusses Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which requires States to comply with the principles of the Convention. In this regard, also on the basis of the interpretation offered by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in General Comment No. 1, the Author recalls that the term “legal capacity” must be understood to include also the capacity to act; that “support” should be understood broadly to include not only judicial support, but also voluntary or ex ante support and de facto support; that there should be a shift from a system based on substitute support based on the best interests of the person with a disability, to a system of collaborative support based on the preferred interest of the person with a disability On this basis, the Author indicates the changes needed to bring Italian civil law into line with the principles and values expressed in the Convention, suggesting, before such a change is made, an interpretation in line with the Convention.