The ruling of the Supreme Court opens up the validity of dismissal communicated even with a simple ordinary email. PEC and registered mail are no longer decisive: what changes now for workers
Raise your hand if you watch the opening scene of The Devil Wears Prada 2he didn’t think: “Something like this could never happen in Italy.” In the film, Andy Sachs and part of the editorial team are fired with a collective email, which arrived on everyone’s cell phones during an awards ceremony. A brutal, almost surreal scene. Yet, today, that dynamic is much less distant from Italian reality than one might believe. A recent ruling by the Court of Cassation (13731/2026) has in fact established a principle destined to provoke discussion: the dismissal can be valid even if communicated via a simple ordinary email, without certified e-mail and without registered letter.
The Court of Cassation: the written form counts for dismissal, not the means used
For years it was taken for granted that a dismissal had to necessarily go through “official” means: registered letter with return receipt or certified e-mail. The idea was simple: such a delicate communication had to be traceable and formally unassailable. The Supreme Court, however, clarified that the real essential requirement provided for by the law is not the means of delivery, but the written form of the dismissal. The relevant law, in fact, only establishes that the withdrawal must be communicated in writing. And according to the judges, an ordinary email satisfies this requirement, as long as the content is clear and unambiguous. The ruling arises from the case of a worker who, after an economic dispute with the company linked to trips abroad, was fired via a normal e-mail sent to his personal address. The worker contested the provision, arguing that the collective agreement provided for only three valid methods of communication: hand delivery, registered mail or certified e-mail. However, the Supreme Court rejected the appeal, clearly distinguishing between: the validity of the dismissal and the means used to transmit it. According to the judges, the dismissal remains valid if the worker actually receives the message and understands its content.
PEC and registered mail do not disappear, but they are no longer decisive
PEC and registered mail continue to represent the safest solution to demonstrate the sending and receipt of the communication. But the ruling introduces an important principle: the absence of a PEC or registered letter does not automatically make the dismissal null and void. The Court explained that many clauses of collective agreements regulate only the methods of transmission of the communication, without expressly providing for nullity in the case of use of different tools. For a dismissal sent via ordinary email to be considered ineffective, the collective agreement should explicitly specify that failure to use a PEC or registered letter will result in the dismissal being null and void.. A detail that in reality is almost never specified in collective agreements. But be careful, if there is no clause, therefore, it does not matter how it is communicated, if it is notified in writing then the dismissal is valid.
What workers should do after the Supreme Court ruling about dismissal via email
Companies therefore have the opportunity to use faster digital tools. For workers, the way they have to manage corporate communications radically changes. What to do? First: Never ignore a business email, even if it appears informal. Second: check what your collective agreement provides for dismissal and whether there is a clause that expressly provides for nullity in the event of non-use of certified e-mail or registered letter. Third: quickly contact a lawyer or employment consultant in the event of a dispute. The deadlines for appealing the dismissal are very strict: 60 days for the out-of-court appeal and 180 days for filing the appeal in court. The calculation starts from the moment the worker becomes aware of the dismissal, regardless of the means used to communicate it.
Today the substance, according to the judges, prevails over the form of the expedition. And the scene of Devil Wears Prada 2 it no longer appears so cinematic or “American.” Even in Italy a simple email can really end a working relationship.
