False comunicazioni sociali e limiti dell'informativa contabile

The first part of the paper discusses the legal notion of a “true” financial statements, in the Italian civil code and in the light of the crime of false accounting of the Criminal code. The position expressed is that the nullity of the financial statements of the civil code and the criminal code provisions are aimed to protect partially different interests. Therefore, a common element is the “relativity” of the concept of “true and fair” financial statements, since this document also contains evaluations due to the accounting standars, that are often discretionary. The second part investigates the limits of the financial information: who are the subjects which the information is directed to, the relevant documents according to the criminal law, and the reasons why the accounting language is complex and comprehensibile only by specialists. The conclusion is that a simplification to make more accessibile the financial information is desirable, as much as the convergence towards universal accounting standards.