The Legal Qualification of Decision Making Software in the Management of Employment Relationships by the Public Administration

In this case, the Italian Administrative Court of Lazio considers a challenge to the use of an algorithm in generating substitute-teacher rankings in the Italian school system. This decision is part of a series of similar cases that have been addressed by Italian administrative case-law in recent years. Notably, it this case the court doesn’t assess the merits of the ranking itself, but rather the preliminary question of jurisdiction – who has the authority to evaluate the algorithm’s legality.The court argues that jurisdiction should not lie with the administrative judge, but with the ordinary judge. The reasoning is that the administration isn’t acting in its capacity as a public authority, but rather as a private employer. This argument is supported by prior rulings from the Administrative Judge and the Court of Cassation. Here, the key distinction is whether the entire algorithm is contested, or just its impact on a specific individual’s rights.