(ANSA) - Exasperated with repeated delays on the Ligurian rail network, an Italian teacher has decided to take the national train company to court for allegedly causing him "existential damage".
Mauro Brunetti, who commutes daily to his job in a school in Savona, said the failings of the local train services were making his life impossible.
After doing some research into recent court cases, he dug up a few references to people sustaining "existential damage" as a result of the behaviour of another person or legal entity.
He decided the charge suited his case perfectly and, according to the local Secolo XIX newspaper, has now begun legal action against Trenitalia, the national rail group. "Being a teacher I have to respect timetables," he explained. "Shortcomings in this area could have serious consequences, and not only from a disciplinary point of view".
He said that by not being in the classroom when he was supposed to be there, he also ran the risk of being sued by parents for neglecting his legal responsibilities. "As well as causing material damage, this situation clearly creates intense stress, with consequences that recent jurisprudence says can be defined as 'existential damage'," he added.
