The Role of General Interests in Abuse of Rights Cases: Comparing the Current Italian System with EU Law (With an Emphasis on Environmental Protection)

This paper examines the recognition of abuse of rights in Italian and European Union law, with the aim of investigating whether general interests can be taken into account when reviewing the exercise of private law prerogatives. After providing an overview of the diverse categories of abuse of rights concepts, the paper underscores the prevailing understandings of abuse of rights and its main applications in the context of Italian and EU law. In particular, the question of whether the potential environmental implications of the exercise of a right is dealt with in the context of neighbours’ relations, general contract law and consumer law.