According to the Am Law Daily web site, high-profile lawyer and parliamentary deputy Giulia Bongiorno is among those leading the charge in Italy.
Ms Bongiorno gained fame after successfully appealing a murder sentence imposed upon Raffaelle Sollecito – the former boyfriend of US student Amanda Knox -- in the Meredith Kercher murder trial in Perugia. Ms Bongiorno is now representing around 70 Italian and Brazilian passengers in a criminal inquiry that is reportedly expected to lead to a trial for Concordia captain, Francesco Schettino, and others.

Quicker rulings

Genoa-based company Costa Crociere – which counted the Concordia among its fleet -- is also planning to seek damages from Mr Schettino and others allegedly responsible for the accident, with the recruitment of Milan-based criminal lawyer Marco De Luca.
Elsewhere, Miami shipping company Carnival Corporation -- which owns Costa Crociere – is a major target for US lawyers involved in the action. According to the report, lawyers have suggested that American courts are likely to be more generous in eventual pay-outs and will make quicker rulings. Italian courts do not impose punitive damages or compensation for anguish and suffering.

Individual stories

New York-based law firms Proner & Proner and Napoli Bern Ripka Shkolnik have already confirmed their involvement in the case after reaching a collaborative agreement with Italian consumer advocacy group Codacons. The two firms filed an action in Florida state court on behalf of six plaintiffs in January, and aim eventually to obtain damages for some 100 passenger clients. They also expect to file two wrongful death suits. ‘We considered filing a class action, but we ruled that out because the individual stories about how people got off that boat were so different,’ explains Mitchell Proner of Proner & Proner.Anglo-US firm Hogan Lovells is representing the Carnival defendants in all US litigation, but declined to comment on the proceedings.