Natalino Irti (5 April 1936 – 11 June 2026) was one of the greatest jurists and thinkers of the 20th century and the first quarter of the 21st century.

An Accademico dei Lincei, President Emeritus of the Italian Institute for Historical Studies founded by Benedetto Croce, and Professor Emeritus of Private Law at La Sapienza University, he held key positions in Italy’s economy during the delicate privatisation phase. He served as President of Credito Italiano, Vice President of Enel, a member of the IRI Board of Directors, and a member of the Privatisation Committee established to manage the divestment of public assets. He was also on the governing bodies of RCS and Telecom. 

Natalino Irti’s contribution to the establishment of the Luiss Faculty of Law was decisive and enlightened. He worked alongside Guido Carli and Rosario Romeo on the project to expand the courses offered by our university, which in 1982 added law to its original courses in economics and political science.

A student of Emilio Betti, he established a school.

We publish the recollections of Natalino Irti's students who teach at our University, passing on his method and teachings: Silvio Martuccelli, Mauro Orlandi, Michele Tamponi, Attilio Zimatore.

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Natalino Irti's scientific and cultural journey offers our souls countless insights. 

At this turning point in life, we would like to shed light on the relationship with our students.

A teacher is someone who leaves a mark: a student who passes on to young people what they themselves received and developed. This is, and must be, the chain of generations, capable of simultaneously safeguarding the past and opening the way forward.

Natalino Irti is many teachers rolled into one. 

A master of the word, sensing its profound power and vertical dimension, like a treasure chest of civilisation.  

Of method, which makes no concessions to fads or easy shortcuts and calls everyone to the humble, rigorous effort of conceptual work. 

Of thought, when with a breadth of culture and analytical rigour he casts his gaze beyond the horizon of time. 

It’s difficult to encapsulate the multifaceted figure of the man and the scholar in a single image. Seemingly opposing traits appear to blend within him: intellectual rigour and attentiveness; a firm hand and a willingness to help; curiosity and strength; unwavering consistency and an openness to new ideas. 

One word encapsulates the essence of this richness: freedom. Thought is the realm of freedom and responsibility. The doors of the mind open only from within; and the Master does not impose or subjugate, but rather inspires and ignites. 

Always exposed to the risk of conformism and adherence, the University and its student community find in Natalino Irti a tireless reminder to cultivate a free mind and a critical spirit, with full and autonomous responsibility for choice. 

The lesson from a few years ago echoes. Three figures stand before us.  

The accidental professor, who finds himself in roles for no particular reason, suffers and shies away from the commitment of research and the rewarding toil of teaching. 

The professor-colleague, intoxicated by departmental councils and competitive ceremonies.   

The professor-teacher. The one who leaves a mark.

Our community now wishes to make sense of the pain of never again, expressing deep gratitude to Professor Natalino Irti for the powerful and ever-evolving mark he left on generations of students and countless young people. 

Silvio Martuccelli, Mauro Orlandi, Michele Tamponi, Attilio Zimatore