Born in Bologna in 1970, he graduated in Law in 1994 with top marks (110/110 cum laude). He earned a Ph.D. in Criminal Procedure in 2000.
He was appointed Assistant Professor in Criminal Procedure at the University of Bologna in 2006, became Associate Professor in 2007, and has been Full Professor since 2016 at the Department of Legal Studies.
Academic Teaching and Research
He has taught Criminal Procedure as well as European and International Criminal Procedure at the Faculty of Law of LUISS Guido Carli University in Rome.
He is a member of the Ph.D. Board in Legal Studies at the University of Bologna.
His research focuses on prosecutorial discretion, rules of evidence, and international and European criminal justice. More broadly, he investigates the relationship between legality and criminal proceedings, as well as the impact of globalization and legal internationalization on criminal procedure.
He is the author of three monographs:
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Poteri dei privati nell’esercizio dell’azione penale, Giappichelli, Turin, 2003
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Ammissione della prova e contraddittorio nelle giurisdizioni penali internazionali, Giappichelli, Turin, 2008
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Premesse per una teoria del pregiudizio effettivo nelle invalidità processuali penali, BUP, Bologna, 2012
Alongside over 130 scholarly publications in journals, collective volumes, and legal encyclopedias.
Research Projects
He has participated in numerous national and international research projects, including:
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Suspects in Europe, Maastricht University (AGIS 2005)
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Rethinking European Criminal Justice, Max Planck Institute, Freiburg (AGIS 2006)
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Harmonization of Witness Evidence in the EU, PRIN 2005
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Effective Defence Rights in the EU, Maastricht University, European Commission, 2007
As co-leader, he coordinated projects funded by OLAF, such as:
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Criminal and Administrative Investigations in the Field of VAT and Custom Duties
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DEVICES – Digital Forensic EVIdence: Towards Common European Standards
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E-Procedure – Evidence in Times of Increased Use of Technology and Digitalization (International Nuremberg Principles Academy)
He was also Principal Investigator of the CrossJustice project (UST-JACC-AG-2018 Program):
https://crossjustice.eu/en/index.html
Together with scholars from the University of North Carolina, the University of Warwick, and the University of Basel, he co-founded the research group The Future of Adversarial and Inquisitorial Systems, which organizes international conferences and publishes comparative studies on criminal justice. Among the publications:
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Preventing Danger. New Paradigms in Criminal Justice, Carolina Academic Press, 2013
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Discretionary Criminal Justice in a Comparative Context, Carolina Academic Press, 2015
Academic Roles
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Director, Department of Legal Studies, University of Bologna (2018–2024)
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Director, School of Specialization for Legal Professions “E. Redenti” (2022–2024)
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Member of the Academic Senate, University of Bologna (since 2024)
Other Appointments
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Coordinator of the Ministry of Justice Working Group on digital criminal proceedings and the creation of the Office for Criminal Process Support (2022)
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Member of the Board of Directors, Association of Criminal Procedure Scholars “G.D. Pisapia” (since 2022)
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Member of the Board of Directors, Italian Group of the International Association of Penal Law (since 2025)
Editorial Activity
He serves on the editorial board of the following international journals:
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European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law and Criminal Justice (of which he is Editor-in-Chief since 2024)
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Revista Brasileira de Direito Processual Penal
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Kazan University Law Review
He is also a member of the editorial board of the following Italian journals:
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Rivista italiana di diritto e procedura penale
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Diritto Penale Contemporaneo – Rivista Trimestrale
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Sistema penale
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Archivio giuridico Filippo Serafini
He is part of the editorial board of the series “Procedura penale – Sez. Commenti e Nuovi itinerari” (Giappichelli), and Associate Editor of the series “Comparative, European and International Criminal Justice” (Springer/Giappichelli).
Legal Practice
He practiced as a lawyer since 1998, he practiced criminal law until 2006. Since 2015, he has been listed among the Assistants to Counsel at the International Criminal Court.
