Mauro Renna

ABSTRACT: The paper deals with two main features of the current regulations about disciplinary measures taken by the special jurisdiction exercised by professional associations The fi rst one concerns the lack of guarantees of fairness and impartiality, which infringes the constitutional right to a fair trial. The second one is about the (limited) role played by third parties in the disciplinary proceedings, with particular reference to the participation in the procedure, the right to access to documents, and the right to contest the adopted measure. The aim of the paper is to underline the need to renew the existing rules about the activities of professional associations, in order to make this bodies compatible with the constitutional values and the social claim to the reliability of the members of professional categories. KEY WORDS: professional associations, disciplinary proceedings, special jurisdiction, fair trial, participation in the procedure. SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa: natura delle funzioni esercitate in materia disciplinare e garanzie costituzionali di indipendenza e imparzialità – 2. I modelli sanzionatori tra procedimento amministrativo e processo giurisdizionale – 3. L’inadeguatezza costituzionale dei sistemi sanzionatori più risalenti nel tempo (in particolare, il caso delle sanzioni disciplinari degli avvocati) – 4. Procedimenti disciplinari, garanzie partecipative e poteri dei terzi – 5. Conclusione: per un rinnovamento del ruolo degli ordini professionali.