84604 - Financial Law (A-L)

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide an up-to-date overview of the Public Finance System. It combines legal, structural, and constitutional analysis of forms of taxation with the choices made in the budgets of the state, regions, and local authorities regarding the financing of functions and services. These ensure budgetary balance, in accordance with constitutional requirements and European constraints, and the sustainability of the social rights protected by the Constitution at the various levels of territorial government and public finance. Public budgets thus integrate national and European financial forecasting choices with administrative efficiency in the management of financial resources, according to constantly evolving accounting procedures. Financial law therefore immediately enhances the knowledge acquired through constitutional law and subsequently helps to better understand tax, administrative, European, and regional law, thus contributing to the completion of the legal training provided by the master's degree program.

Course contents

JEAN MONNET CHAIR PUBLIC FINANCE LAW AND EUROPEAN INTEGRATION

In the academic year 2025/2026, the teaching of public finance law will form an integral part of the Jean Monnet Chair “Public Finance Law and European Integration” (Project: 101177073 - PUBFINE), co-funded by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) of the European Commission under the Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Action.

The public finance law course will therefore place particular emphasis on aspects related to the European dimension of public finance and its relationship with EU law.

The training activities of the Jean Monnet Chair in Public Finance Law and European Integration will consist of the teaching of Public Finance Law, as well as two interdisciplinary seminars worth 2 CFU credits each, which will take place in parallel with the Financial Law course in the period March-May 2026, coordinated and taught by Prof. Andrea Mondini (please refer to the teacher's web page for further details).

For the academic year 2024/2025, the seminars will focus on the following topics:

• European coordination of national public finances and the reform of the European Stability and Growth Pact
• Fiscal sovereignty and European integration

The seminars can be included in the study plan by students of the Bachelor's Degree Program in Labor Relations (CLARA) in their 2nd and 3rd years and by students of the Master's Degree Program in Law (LMCU) in their 5th year among the educational activities for which free credits are available.

THE FINANCIAL LAW COURSE

The Financial Law course aims to provide students with knowledge of the fundamental concepts in the following areas:

- state financial and accounting systems;

- principles, structure, and functions of public finance systems;

- the state budget and its planning and approval process;

- the tax system;

- public debt;

- public spending.

In line with this objective, the program will analyze the legal framework of Italian public finance, devoting a significant part of the course to the rules and constraints that EU law establishes for the coordination of national public finances within the European Stability and Growth Pact.

The course program is divided into two parts:

- a general institutional part

- and a special monographic part that varies each academic year and explores some of the topics covered in the general part in greater depth.

The lectures mainly focus on the monographic part, with appropriate references to the other topics covered in the general part.

The GENERAL INSTITUTIONAL PROGRAM covers the following six macro-topics, divided into the sections indicated below.

I. Principles and functions of public finance law

1. Public finance between economics, law, and politics.

2. Basic concepts of macroeconomics and national public accounting

3. The financial system and the accounting system. Historical evolution and legal sources

4. From neutral to functional public finance in a market economy: allocation, redistribution, and stabilization/development.

5. Characteristics, principles, and functions of the public budget and the financial activities of local public authorities.

6. Budget harmonization and the European system of public accounts

7. Budget policy and overall public finance balances

II. The state budget: planning, decision-making, and implementation

1. Budget decisions and the dialectic between the government and parliament.

2. The budget process

3. The budget planning cycle in Italy and policy guidelines: Economic and Financial Document, Update to the DEF, Budget Planning Document

4. The procedure for drafting the budget bill

5. The parliamentary budget session and the procedure for approving the state budget

6. The budget law

7. Provisional implementation of the budget

8. Laws related to the financial maneuver

9. The adjustment law and budget changes

10. Corrective measures

11. The general state account and the approval judgment

12. Budget management: revenue and expenditure phases

13. The payment schedule

14. Residual assets and liabilities

15. The Treasury service

16. Administrative and accounting responsibility related to the handling of public money

17. Internal and external controls on public finance acts and activities

III. Public revenue

1. Classification and taxonomy of revenue in the State budget.

2. Tax revenue

3. Types of taxes and criteria for allocating public expenditure

4. Constitutional tax principles: legal reserve, ability to pay, progressive taxation

5. The tax system and the main taxes in Italy

6. Multi-level taxation and so-called fiscal federalism

7. The economic effects of taxes

8. So-called extra-fiscal taxation

9. Compulsory and corresponding non-tax revenue. Public tariffs.

10. Revenue from the disposal of assets. The financial implications of the management of state property and assets.

11. Parafiscal charges and the financing of the social security system

12. Borrowing and public debt

IV. Public debt and budget balance

1. General characteristics, structure, and types of public debt

2. Causes and effects of public debt

3. History of Italian public debt

4. National regulations on government securities

5. Budget balance and sustainability of public debt

6. Constitutional limits for the debt of the State, Regions, and other public entities

7.

Financial balance as a parameter of constitutionality of laws

8. European regulation of public debt and European fiscal rules

V. Public spending

1. General characteristics, trends, and composition of public spending in Italy

2. Planning and management of public spending: classification, quantification, monitoring, efficiency, and review

3. Tax expenditures

4. Spending laws and their relationship with the Budget Law

5. The constitutional principle of financial coverage of spending laws

6. The main means of coverage

7. The “cost of rights” and public spending as a guarantee of their effectiveness

8. Public spending and the protection of financial balance in the case law of the Constitutional Court

VI. Supranational governance of public finances

1. European coordination of national economic and budgetary policies

2. The European Stability and Growth Pact and its reform

3. The “alert mechanism,” enhanced surveillance procedures, and the procedure against excessive macroeconomic imbalances

4. The European Stability Mechanism (ESM)

5. Next Generation EU and EU debt

6. Currency and monetary policy

7. The European Central Bank and ordinary and non-conventional monetary policy instruments.

8. The interrelationships between fiscal policy and monetary policy in the case law of the EU Court of Justice

 

The MONOGRAPHIC PROGRAM for the academic year 2025/2026, which will be covered during the lectures, is dedicated to:

“PUBLIC SPENDING AND THE COST OF RIGHTS”

The monographic part will focus mainly on macro-topics V and VI of the general program.

The exam program coincides with the topics covered in class and with the topics covered in the texts suggested for exam preparation.

Non-attending students will study the monographic part by supplementing the reading of the suggested textbook with the reading of an additional text (see the section Texts/Bibliography below).

On virtuale.unibo.it supplementary materials (legislation, case law) will be published, which must be consulted by all students (attending and non-attending) in order to prepare for the exam, as well as any additions and updates to the study texts, in view of the legislative reforms currently underway.

 

The program for ERASMUS STUDENTS is the same as that for Italian students. Any changes to the exam program may be requested by Erasmus students from the professor only if necessary to obtain recognition of the financial law exam at their home university.

 

NOTE FOR PUBLIC FINANCE LAW STUDENTS (A-L) course code 01621 worth 7 CFU

In the exam program for students who include Public Finance Law (7 CFU, course code 01621) in their 5th year study plan, macro-topic III (public revenue, except point 12) and points 6 to 8 of macro-topic VI are EXCLUDED. Please contact the professor to agree on the parts of the textbook that do not need to be studied.

 

Readings/Bibliography

To prepare for the exam, it is recommended that candidates study the texts listed below. The texts to be studied are differentiated for attending and non-attending students.

ATTENDING STUDENTS (students who have attended at least 80% of the lessons, 48 hours out of 60) should prepare for the exam using the following text (to be supplemented with lesson notes):

- Andrea Mondini, Corso di diritto della finanza pubblica, Cedam-Wolters Kluwer, Milan, in the most recent edition available on the market. The 2021 edition must be supplemented with the most recent update appendix, available online on the publisher's website (https://shop.wki.it/libri/corso-di-diritto-della-finanza-pubblica-s748691/) and on virtuale.unibo.it. All chaptersof the textbook must be studied, except for the introduction and chapter XVI, which may only be read. Any new edition of the textbook, if available in 2026, will be announced on this website and during the lessons.

NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS (who do not attend at least 80% of the lessons, 48 hours out of 60) should prepare for the exam using the following texts:

1) for the general institutional part of the program: Andrea Mondini, Corso di diritto della finanza pubblica, Cedam-Wolters Kluwer, Milan, in the most recent edition available on the market. The 2021 edition must be supplemented with the most recent update appendix, available online on the publisher's website (https://shop.wki.it/libri/corso-di-diritto-della-finanza-pubblica-s748691/) and on virtuale.unibo.it. Non-attending students must study the entire textbook. Any new edition of the textbook, if available in 2026, will be announced on this website and during the lectures.

2) For the special monographic part of the Program, dedicated to the topic “Public spending and the cost of rights,” before the start of classes, several texts (book chapters, articles from scientific journals) will be indicated on this website and on virtuale.unibo.it. These texts will be available and can be consulted through the University library service, in the online resources sections accessible from the website sba.unibo.it (E-books, Electronic Journals, Databases).

 

For ALL STUDENTS:

During the lectures, supplementary teaching materials (legal texts, public finance and public accounting documents, judgments, diagrams, notes, and in-depth analyses of specific topics covered in class) will be made available on the website https://virtuale.unibo.it. Guided reading guides on any new legislation on public finance not covered in the handouts and study texts may be made available on the online teaching materials website.

In any case, it is necessary to consult the main reference texts in their current version: Italian Constitution, Law 196/2009 and Law 243/2012 and subsequent amendments and additions, Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, European regulations on the Stability and Growth Pact, in particular EU Regulations 1263/2024 and 1467/1997.

 

STUDY PROGRAMME worth 7 CFU:

For students enrolled in the degree course in Labor and Business Relations Consultancy who have opted for the 7 CFU course in Financial Law (code 01621), the Manual must be studied in its entirety (including the UPDATE Appendix) with the following exceptions: the following are only to be READ: chapter I; paragraphs 5.4.1. to 5.4.3. of chapter V; paragraph 12.2 of chapter XII. The following are NOT to be studied and may be omitted: chapter VI (except paragraphs 6.3.5. and 6.3.6.); chapter XV; chapter XVI; paragraphs 2.1 to 2.3 and 4.6 of the UPDATE Appendix.

 

ERASMUS STUDENTS

The exam program and study texts for ERASMUS students are the same as those for Italian students.

 

STUDENTS WHO HAVE TAKEN THE COURSE IN PREVIOUS ACADEMIC YEARS

Students who have completed attendance in a previous academic year and intend to take the exam in the 2025/2026 academic year may take the exam based on the program for the academic year in which they attended, but must study the latest updated edition of the textbooks (with the update appendix).

 

Teaching methods

Lectures.

Attendance at lectures is automatically recorded by the students and will only be used for the purposes of student registration within the Jean Monnet Chair project. Attendance at lectures is strongly recommended for a better understanding of the more technical aspects of the subject, also in view of the legislative reforms currently underway, which will be discussed in depth during the lectures.

Lectures will be held exclusively in person.

The study of the textbook and other teaching materials indicated in the appropriate section TEXTS/BIBLIOGRAPHY corresponds to the exam program.

Students who do not attend at least 80% of the lectures must prepare the special monographic part of the program by supplementing the study of the textbook with additional texts (book chapters, articles) indicated in the TEXTS/BIBLIOGRAPHY section.

Assessment methods

Exam registration. Students must use only the Almaesami web platform. Registration closes three days before the exam date. LATE REGISTRATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Students who have already registered but no longer intend to take the exam must cancel their registration by the same deadline. Students who have registered but no longer wish to take the exam and have not canceled their registration in time must report to the exam room on the day of the exam to record their withdrawal. Students who, due to circumstances arising after the deadline for withdrawal from the list, are unable to attend the exam, must inform the professor by the start of the exam (including by email).

Conduct of exams. The exam will be conducted mainly in oral and discursive form. The oral exam may be organized in several consecutive daily sessions, depending on the number of students enrolled. All students enrolled in the exam must attend on the first day of the exam session. If the number of students present exceeds the maximum number of students that can be examined by the Commission on the first day, the remaining students will be examined on subsequent days, which will be communicated to those present by the Commission, in the order in which they are enrolled on the exam list.

Conduct of the interview. During the interview, the Examination Board will ask candidates questions (usually 3-4) of both a theoretical and practical nature, based on the concepts and knowledge acquired through attendance at lectures and critical reading of the study texts and teaching materials. The questions in the oral interview will focus on the topics indicated in the PROGRAM AND CONTENTS section. To prepare for the exam, students are required to study the texts and readings indicated in the TEXTS/BIBLIOGRAPHY section and consult the main legislation referred to in the texts and during the lessons. The questions aim to verify, among other things, whether the student has learned the concepts related to the legal institutions studied, whether they are able to explain the main issues concerning the topics studied through correct legal reasoning, whether they have acquired the necessary argumentation skills for interpreting regulations and analyzing and solving legal problems, and whether they are able to critically apply the knowledge acquired, also referring to the content of the rules, case law, and doctrine.

Assessment of the exam. In particular, the assessment of the exam will be carried out taking into account:

• knowledge of institutional profiles;
• the ability to make connections between the different parts of the program;
• the articulation, accuracy, and completeness of the presentation;
• the degree of learning and ability to use the concepts and technical terminology characterizing the subject;
• the ability to systematically frame the institutions, topics, and problems proposed, also taking into account case law and doctrinal guidelines;
• the ability to develop adequate analyses of the issues proposed and critical arguments.

By way of example, the final mark will be based on the following criteria:

• sufficient or slightly above sufficient knowledge of the topics covered, poor critical thinking skills, difficulty in using technical legal language → 18-20
• fair knowledge of the topics covered, sufficient critical thinking skills, acceptable use of technical legal language → 21-23
• fair or fairly good preparation on the topics covered, fair critical thinking skills, fair use of technical legal language → 24-26
• good or more than good preparation on the topics covered, good critical thinking skills, good mastery of technical legal language → 27-28
• substantially comprehensive preparation on the topics covered, good critical skills, very good mastery of technical legal language → 29
• exhaustive preparation on the topics covered, excellent critical skills, full and conscious mastery of technical-legal language → 30
• absolutely exhaustive preparation on the topics covered, excellent critical skills, excellent and total mastery of technical-legal language → 30L

Students who complete the course for the first time in the academic year 2025/2026 (second semester) will be able to take the exam starting from the first exam session in May 2026. Exam sessions until February 2027 are part of the academic year 2025/2026.

In order to be assigned a thesis, students must have already passed the course exam. Any thesis will be assigned by the course professor, subject to the student submitting a brief abstract of the thesis project and passing an interview with the professor. Assignments will be made according to a schedule that will be posted on the professor's web page in the “notices” section.

Teaching tools

The following will be made available to students via the virtual.unibo.it platform:

• any readings, further reading, lecture notes, slides, documents presented and discussed in class during lectures, as teaching materials to support exam preparation;
• optional tools to support learning assessment on specific topics or parts of the program (self-assessment questionnaires; tests to assess understanding of key concepts).

Students with SLDs or temporary or permanent disabilities are invited to contact the University office responsible for students with SLDs (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it) in good time: The office will propose any necessary adjustments to the students concerned, which must in any case be submitted 15 days in advance for approval by the teacher, who will assess their appropriateness in relation to the educational objectives of the course.

Office hours

See the website of Andrea Mondini