Il termine ‘Comunità ebraica’ e la sua tutelabilità giuridica: riflessioni ed ipotesi a partire da una controversia catanese

The conflict between the Union of Italian Jewish Communities and the Jewish Community of Catania Association had a first outcome with the judgement of the First Instance Court of Catania, dated 31st January 2025. The ruling rejected the claim of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities to inhibit the use of the expression ‘Jewish Community’ and clarified that this name cannot be considered for the exclusive use of communities established pursuant to Law 101/1989. The article aims to critically retrace the logical-legal process followed by the judge and to highlight some problematic motivational links and points of legal regulatory framework, such as the compatibility with Articles 8 and 19 of the Constitution of the norms that define the structure of the Jewish communities affiliated to the Italian Union of Jewish Communities, the protection of the name of denominational entities against the risk of confusion, and the recognition of the «right to dissent» as a profile of individual and collective religious freedom.