CONSIGLIO DI STATO. – The C. di S., which passed from the legislation of the Kingdom of Piemonte (itself an imitator of Napoleonic legislation), with significant modifications, into that of the Kingdom of Italy, principally had the character of a permanent collegial body of the central administration, endowed with consultative functions in administrative matters; however, until 1865 it also had jurisdiction in matters of administrative litigation, a jurisdiction that was subsequently re-established, with different characteristics, by the law of 31 March 1889, no. 5992, and was later expanded and more precisely defined.
In ecclesiastical matters, the C. di S. currently has jurisdictional competence, to adjudicate, not only with regard to legality but also on the merits, “appeals concerning the sequestration of temporalities, measures relating to the respective powers of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities, and provisional acts for general security relating to this matter” (art. 27, no. 1 of the Consolidated Act of 26 June 1924, no. 1054; cf. also art. 10, no. 3 of the law of 20 March 1865, annex D); but this competence is now almost devoid of practical importance. The C. di S. nevertheless retains jurisdiction to adjudicate appeals against administrative acts (of government bodies) in ecclesiastical matters, according to the principles and within the limits that generally govern the challengeability of administrative acts before the C. di S.: accordingly, as a rule, an appeal to the C. di S. is admissible only if the administrative act is final (that is, not challengeable by means of a hierarchical appeal), and only on grounds of legality (lack of competence, abuse of power, and violation of the law), not on grounds relating to the merits.
Also in ecclesiastical matters, the C. di S. has consultative competence (that is, the governmental authority must first seek its opinion, although it is not obliged to conform to it) with regard to: the recognition of legal personality for ecclesiastical entities; the civil recognition of any substantial change in the purpose, the allocation of assets, or the mode of existence of any civilly recognized ecclesiastical entity; the civil recognition of the imposition of pensions, including temporary pensions, on benefices eligible for congrua payments (v. CONGRUA: art. 4 of the law of 27 May 1929, no. 848); the granting of authorization for an ecclesiastical entity to acquire property valued at more than one and a half million lire (D. L. 4 Nov. 1947, no. 1229; under art. 9 of the law of 27 May 1929, no. 848, the opinion of the C. di S. was required whenever the value of the property exceeded 300,000 lire); the refusal of the aforementioned authorization, whatever the value of the property (art. 19 of R. D. 22 Dec. 1929, no. 2262); the granting of authorization to benefices eligible for congrua payments, fabbricerie, and confraternities whose exclusive or predominant purpose is not worship, to perform acts exceeding ordinary administration, where the value of the act exceeds certain limits (D. L. 4 Nov. 1947, no. 1229, which quintupled the value limit established in arts. 24–25 of R. D. 22 Dec. 1929, no. 2262).