Femicide: The Rule of Law & The Role of Law Lunch Panel

Femicide – the gender-based murder of women and girls – takes thousands of lives every year. These deaths are not random: they are predictable, patterned, and in many cases, preventable. Yet legal systems have largely failed to treat them as such, allowing gender-based violence to persist as a crisis met with insufficient response.

In November 2025, Italy became one of the first countries in the world to formally recognize femicide as a distinct criminal offense, punishable by life in prison. The law raises important questions about the role of law in addressing gender-based violence and advancing gender justice.

Join the Gender Violence Program for a lunch panel exploring the implications of this new legal development: its origins, its promise, its implications, and its limits.

What does it mean to formally name and criminalize femicide? How does the law interact with broader cultural, institutional, and policy responses to gender-based violence? What can a comparative lens teach us about the path forward?

Panelists:

• Judge Fabio Roia, President of the Tribunal of Milan
• Graziella Romeo, Professor, Bocconi University Milan
• Diane Rosenfeld, Lecturer, Harvard Law School

Moderator: Magdalena Greco, PhD Student, Bocconi University Milan

April 8 | 12:30–1:30 PM | Griswold 110
Lunch will be provided.
Sponsored by the HLS Gender Violence Program.