Il declino della decisione motivata

The article highlights the decline of the duty to state reasons both in administrative acts and judicial decisions. Essentially, albeit not exclusively, case law plays a key role in depreciation of the general duty to state reasons for administrative acts. This happens through different manifestations (lack of reasoning, implicit statement of reasons, sufficient or posthumous statement of reasons) and concerns even discretionary administrative acts. Likewise, the duty to state reasons for judicial decisions is going through a process of progressive emptying, both by legislature initiatives and case-law. Even in this case, the phenomenon is general and transversal, covering both administrative courts and civil courts decisions. It has different manifestations, such as simplified statement of reasons or statement of reasons per relationem. The decline of the duty to state reasons leads to a return to the past, when all that matter was the decision. The statement of reasons relates instead to legitimization and rationalization of public power. The lack of the statement of reasons is the essential means of arbitrary exercise of power.