Identity and legal tradition
Associated law firm in Como since 1955
Ferrara, Zappoli & Partners is a boutique law firm established in Como in 1955. Seven lawyers — including three admitted to practice before the Italian Supreme Court of Cassation and higher courts — assist individuals, families, and businesses across nine practice areas, providing counsel in both Italian and English. Headquartered in the historic center of Como, the firm maintains a consolidated nationwide practice with a strong presence in Milan and across Lombardy. For over twenty years, the firm has advised international investors and private clients, an activity now fully structured within its dedicated International Desk.
FROM OUR FOUNDING TO PRESENT DAY
Our History
1955 — The beginning
The firm was founded in Como in 1955 by Avv. Giorgio Ferrara, who had taught literary disciplines, Latin, and Greek at the classical high school for many years before earning his law degree and admitting the to the Bar. That teaching vocation and those humanist roots shaped the traits that still define the firm today: attentive listening, empathy, rigor in the analysis of each case, and a tailored care for language, written and spoken.
The second generation and continuity
The second generation consolidated and expanded the practice. Avv. Giancarlo Ferrara, admitted to the Como Bar in 1973, has been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Cassation since 1988 and boast over fifty years of Bar membership. Alongside him, since the late 1980s, Avv. Silvia Zappoli began her training while the founder was still fully active; admitted to the Bar in 1990 and to practice before the Court of Cassation in 2002, she has consistently supported Giancarlo Ferrara and contributed to the firm's strategic and organizational development.
Technology and a modern organization
Alongside the growth of its civil and business practice, the firm has invested continuously in methodology and technology: from the first computer systems adopted as early as the late 1980s, through the extensive digitization of the 1990s and the arrival of the internet, to the integration of Italy's electronic court filing system (Processo Civile Telematico), remote advisory services, and, today, the considered use of artificial intelligence to support legal research and analysis.
An associated firm since 2014
Since 1 January 2014, the firm has practiced as an association under the name Studio Legale Associato Ferrara, Zappoli & Partners. The partners are now joined by the third generation of the Ferrara family: three generations of lawyers, with continuity of method, rigor, and relationships.
Method and transparency
How We Work
Every matter has a dedicated lawyer, who works with the client for the entire duration of the engagement and consults regularly with the firm's partners. Clients know the terms of the relationship from the outset: the timeframes within which they will hear back, and a tailored fee estimate prepared when the engagement is accepted on the basis of Italian statutory bar fee scale, with hourly rates, flat fees, or retainer arrangements available. Wherever circumstances allow, the firm favors settling disputes out of court. Meetings are held at our offices or by video call.
In addition to advising individuals and families, the firm works closely with companies on an ongoing basis, including acting as an outsourced legal department for small and medium-sized enterprises.
LOCAL AND NATIONANL REACH
Where We Work
The firm's offices are in Como, at Piazza Alessandro Volta 33, in the heart of the city center. We appear and advise regularly within the jurisdiction of the Court of Como and in the other districts of the relevant Court of Appeal — including Milan, Varese, Monza, and Lecco. Where required, the firm acts before any court in Italy: scheduled travel, a solid network of trusted local correspondent lawyers, and full use of the electronic court filing system allow us to provide prompt and continuous assistance to clients wherever they are based.
Guiding principles
Our Values
Expertise
Nine practice areas, each handled by the lawyers who practice in it every day, with continuous professional training.
Relationship
A dedicated lawyer for every client and a personal, direct, and continuous working relationship.
Prevention
Priority to out-of-court settlement, reserving litigation for cases where it is genuinely necessary.
Confidentiality
Protection of the client's confidentiality and interests at every stage of the engagement.
The team
Firm Professionals
The team brings together nine people: seven lawyers — six members of the firm and one of counsel admitted to the Milan Bar — and two secretarial assistants. The firm's lawyers are admitted to the Como Bar; three are admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Cassation, since 1988, 2002, and 2022 respectively. The partners are also authors of legal publications.
A deliberately compact size, which allows every client a direct and personal relationship with their own lawyer.
Cross-border reach
An International Outlook
The firm has advised international clients for over twenty years.
Driven by sustained foreign investment across Lake Como and throughout Italy, this cross-border practice is fully structured within the firm's International Desk. The Desk provides dedicated counsel to international individuals, family offices, and corporate entities seeking to acquire assets, invest, or establish residence in Italy, across four core practice areas: real estate law, corporate and business law, residence and taxation in Italy, succession and civil law.
Legal assistance is directly provided in Italian and English. For transactions requiring additional languages, the firm works alongside certified legal translators.
To ensure comprehensive coverage for complex cross-border transactions, the firm collaborates with trusted notaries, tax advisors, and foreign counsel representing our clients abroad.
Clarifications and information
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the firm founded, and by whom?
The firm was founded in Como in 1955 by Giorgio Ferrara, formerly a teacher of classics at high school level. The practice continued with Giancarlo Ferrara, consistently supported by Silvia Zappoli, and today involves the third generation of the Ferrara family. Since 2014 the firm has practiced as an association under the name Studio Legale Associato Ferrara, Zappoli & Partners.
What does "associated law firm" mean?
It is a firm in which several lawyers practice in an organized and shared structure: the client has a dedicated lawyer for their matter, but can rely on the expertise of the entire team across different areas of law. Ferrara, Zappoli & Partners has practiced as an association since 1 January 2014.
Which languages does the firm work in?
Assistance is provided in Italian and English, the firm's two working languages. For documents and negotiations in other languages we work with qualified translators. This website is also available in French and German, for the international clients of the International Desk.
Do you advise clients outside Como, in Milan or abroad?
Yes. Our offices are in Como; the firm works regularly in Milan and in the other districts of the Milan Court of Appeal — Varese, Monza, Lecco — and, where needed, throughout Italy, including through local agents and the electronic court filing system. International clients are looked after by the International Desk, with video meetings and assistance in English.
Request a consultation
Let's talk about your matter
A first confidential meeting, at our offices or by video call, to review your situation and identify the most appropriate course of action together.