Abstract

The aim of this essay is to examine the strong impact that the recent so-called Cartabia reform in civil matters may have, in the absence of a public debate, on the field of Italian juvenile justice. Viewing the discussion of this reform in the context of a general retreat of public intervention in the protection of social rights, it provides an opportunity to draw attention to problematic issues at the heart of old debates and linked to some of the central themes of Platt’s The Child Savers. These include the role of childhood experts in juvenile justice institutions and the “functionalµ ambivalence that has characterized these institutions since their inception.