Thesis title: Contract Negotiation and the Environment: New Tools for Sustainability
This research systematically examines the influence of European environmental law on economic and contractual activities, with particular attention to sustainability, liability, and technological innovation. It reconstructs the framework of principles and sources of European Union environmental law, highlighting the role of secondary legislation and recent directives in civil, criminal, and administrative law. Particular emphasis is given to Directive (EU) 2024/1203, the regulation of environmental impacts of extraordinary corporate operations, and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) under Directive 2011/92/EU. The analysis of the Court of Justice of the European Union case law shows how the principles of prevention, precaution, and damage remediation have acquired a transversal function, significantly affecting corporate liability and national legislative policies.
The research also explores the impact of the sustainability principle on public and consumer contracts, including the evolution of privatization processes, public contract regulation, and the role of Green Public Procurement (GPP) and Minimum Environmental Criteria (CAM) in promoting sustainable production and consumption models. In consumer law, attention is devoted to labeling, product environmental compliance, guarantee systems, and liability, with specific reference to Italian legislation in the wine sector and European jurisprudence on transparency and information.
Furthermore, the study develops new models of liability related to certification systems and emerging technologies. Through the analysis of case law and practical applications, it reconstructs the legal nature of the certifying body’s performance as an autonomous control activity distinct from the producer. From this, a concurrent liability framework between the producer and the certifying body emerges, aimed at strengthening consumer protection and market security. The research also highlights the role of new technologies in supporting certification, monitoring production processes, and enhancing environmental compliance.
Overall, the study demonstrates how sustainability, once a programmatic principle, is progressively becoming an operative legal criterion, capable of redefining liability, contractual relations, corporate governance, and the integration of technological tools in contemporary European law.