Abstract

The contribution analyses the issue of the premium provided for in the event of accidental discovery in the light of a recent Council of State ruling. The central issue concerns the limits within which the owner may also be recognised as discoverer for the purposes of the application of the second paragraph of Article 92 of Legislative Decree no. 42 of 22 January 2004. In this sense, the judgement affirms the principle according to which ‘cuius commoda, eius et incommoda’, which leads to the conclusion that the owner who is also the holder of the building permit and the direct and primary recipient of the Superintendence’s prescriptions may also be considered a discoverer. Other relevant aspects also concern the criteria and parameters for establishing the quantum of the award, the applicability of the provisions of Law No. 241 of 7 August 1990 in the procedure envisaged for the granting of the award and, finally, the non-liability of the award to withholding tax pursuant to Article 30 of Presidential Decree No. 600 of 29 September 1973.