Ranucci's appeal for reinstatement: hearing set for September 25th

Rome – Sigfrido Ranucci's appeal for reinstatement: a hearing has been scheduled for September 25th. The urgent appeal filed by the journalist's lawyers will be heard before the judge of the Third Section of the Rome Labor Court.

The legal team requests an immediate suspension of the thirty-day deadline, expiring on September 27, 2026, assigned to Ranucci in the RAI communication of August 28 for the exercise of the option between the three proposed positions, until the present precautionary proceedings are concluded.

The lawsuit also requests that RAI be "enjoined from unilaterally assigning Ranucci" the positions or "in any case definitively execute the reassignment procedure." The lawyers ask the court to "provisionally declare the nullity and, in any case, the illegality of the provision" and to reinstate Ranucci to his "roles as author and host" of the RaiTre program "immediately and in any case before the start of broadcasts for the new season," scheduled for November 8th.

The panel assisting the journalist is composed of Professors Franco Focareta and Franco Scarpelli and attorney Stefano Rossi, part of the Devitalaw team coordinated by Professor Roberto De Vita. In the 43-page brief, the lawyers retrace Ranucci's career and argue that his dismissal is manifestly lacking sufficient justification. They also emphasize the need to protect the independence and autonomy of investigative journalism.

Disciplinary proceedings: Ranucci must submit his defense brief by next Monday.

Meanwhile, the journalist will have to respond, by Monday, with a defense brief to the complaint for violation of the internal code of ethics sent to him by RAI.

The charges reportedly concern alleged violations of company rules regarding employee personal conduct, particularly regarding the journalist's statements and publications, as well as unauthorized access to company premises.

According to the company, the complaints that could trigger disciplinary action against Ranucci do not concern his removal from the management of Report, nor from the ad personam deputy directorship of Rai's In-Depth News department.

Paolo Corsini, director of Rai's In-Depth News, said: "I'm not responsible for the disciplinary proceedings; Ranucci is an asset to the company."

This morning, RAI's In-Depth News Director, Paolo Corsini, reiterated his position in response to questions about the disciplinary proceedings against Ranucci and the overlap with the journalist's appeal for reinstatement: "I can't comment on this position because disciplinary proceedings go through Human Resources and Organization, so this type of intervention isn't my responsibility. I think the timing is just a matter of chance, given the 24-hour difference, but these are procedures that take time. I'm not the right person to ask these types of questions because I deal with editorial matters."

Corsini then added: "Ranucci is a resource for this company, an employee of this company, a deputy editor, a person, a journalist, a name. I believe the evaluation has shifted beyond the editorial level—so, I repeat, it's not my responsibility—to other levels, such as disciplinary matters and other matters that are not my responsibility. I've made my editorial decisions, you know, I made them some time ago, and we're working on them. Report returns on November 8th, prime time on Rai 3 on Sundays, with a repeat on Saturday afternoons. Honestly, that's what I'm responsible for."