Court Decision Translation

What does the court-decision translation cover?

Decisions such as divorce, custody, alimony, name/surname change, or recognition-enforcement fall into this group. The decision is obtained from the court together with the finality annotation and documents the person’s civil/legal situation.

What is it needed for in an Italian application?

It is asked for to show the civil status after a divorce, to prove the custody of a minor child (in single-parent consent above all), and to document the legal tie in family-reunion and residence procedures. Name-change decisions can be needed for consistency between documents.

Where and how do you get the document?

Obtain the certified copy of the finalised decision from the court that issued it; the apostille on a courthouse-sourced document is taken through the relevant Justice Commission/Prosecutor’s Office. It matters that the decision carries the finality annotation.

The apostille and sworn-translation process

Take the finalised decision, have it apostilled and have the sworn Italian translation made from the apostilled version. The decision number, the parties and the operative part (the ruling) must be preserved exactly in the translation.

What to watch in the sworn translation

The decision must be finalised and carry the finality annotation; a non-finalised decision may not be accepted. In custody decisions the operative clause must translate plainly.

Frequently asked questions