Court of Rome Rejects Request to Seize Aeroitalia Shares; Legal Dispute Continues

The Court of Rome has rejected a legal challenge concerning the ownership of the airline Aeroitalia S.p.A., confirming the position of Marc Bourgade as the company's president and sole shareholder.

In its ruling, the court fully dismissed the opposing party's request for the judicial seizure of Bourgade's entire shareholding. The court accepted the arguments presented by Watson Farley & Williams, finding that the legal prerequisites for such an extraordinary measure were absent and thereby ensuring the stability of the airline's ownership structure.

WFW assisted Marc Bourgade with a team led by Partner Giannalberto Mazzei and Senior Associate Giuseppe Salsarulo, supported by associates Veronica Proietti and Enzo Maria Incutti. The team worked in close collaboration with Emanuela Lanzi, General Counsel of Aeroitalia.

Update – February 18, 2026:

Editor’s Note / Clarification: Following the publication of this report, legal representatives for JDK (associated with the Efromovich family) have clarified that the Court of Rome’s decision was specifically a procedural rejection of a request for judicial seizure. While the seizure was dismissed, the underlying dispute regarding the substantive ownership of Aeroitalia shares remains a matter of ongoing litigation before the Courts in London. This article has been updated to reflect the procedural nature of the Roman ruling.