About Me

Umberto Nizza

Umberto is a post-doctoral fellow in economics and econometrics at the University of Verona. He holds a Ph.D. in economics from Collegio Carlo Alberto (Italy). Before devoting his life to academic research, che was an attorney and international consultant for the international bodies and non-governative organizations.

PUBLICATIONS AND RESEARCH ARTICLES

Are polarized courts dangerous for litigation? Evidence from French labor courts: Journal of Institutional Economics, 2021(17): 799-820, doi:10.1017/S1744137421000126

The expertise effect: the impact of legal specialists’ intervention on the timely delivery of laymen’s judgments: Economia Politica, 2022. doi: 10.1007/s40888-022-00277-5

Quantitative analysis of legal data, in C. Rossi Chauvenet & S. Martinelli (eds.), Legal Tech, Big Data and smart contracts for professionals and firms, Milan: Wolters Kluwers: 159-173

Unicorns exist: a legal-economic analysis of Piedmonts startups’ panorama (with R. de Caria, forthcoming, Il Nuovo Diritto delle Società)

Standing on the shoulders of (clay) giants: Challenging the economic giants with an eye to the law (under review Journal of Institutional Economics)

Work in progress

The Spritz effect: Anatomy of a success of Prosecco’s trade (with A. Zago & D. Lubian)

The competitive landscape of Italian Geographical Indications: A wine perspective (with G. Gasteldello, G. Schamel, A. Zago)

Towards a sustainable wine industry: Insights from Italian wine cooperatives (with G. Gasteldello, G. Schamel, A. Zago)

Uncorked: detecting cooperators’ sentiment in challenging times (with G. Gasteldello, G. Schamel, A. Zago)

European and American antitrust fines in the digital market: similar objectives but opposite deterrence results? (with C. Poncibò)

Clip freedom wings: Unjust detentions in Italy and the efficiency of the Justice System

Cheating the AI: The dark side of chatGPT

Nothing last forever. The effect of experiencing massive massacres on the imposition of life imprisonment among international criminal courts:

Are lawyers boxing referees? Critical Perspectives from French High Courts

Love never betrays. Deputies do. An empirical study of parliamentarians’ productivity at the time of bunga bunga

Should I stay or should I go? Senatorial absenteeism and the determinants of lawmaking productivity

Does it pay to become a politician? From populistic newcomers to ordinary professional representatives

Fidelio: not opening the doors to rebellious teens parliamentarians

Should we fear shirking politicians? The impact of lawmakers’ productivity on markets’ trust and debts rates

Faut-il craindre la concurrence des avocats ? L’impact d’une concurrence accrue sur les chances des justiciables

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Post-doctoral research fellow (09/2021 – 08/2024) University of Verona: Collaboration in the implementation of the Horizon2020 project Governing the agri-food supply chain: how to improve smallholders competitiveness, part of the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA). Assistance in examinations in econometrics and industrial economy. Organizer of mid-day seminars of the department of economics.

Research fellow (02/2020 – 08/2021) University of Turin: Data collection and economic and legal analysis of startups functioning. Collaboration in the drafting of Italian Research Projects of National Relevance and European Jean Monnet calls (awarded by the European Commission). Tutoring of students  

Post-doctoral research fellow (02/2020 – 02/2021) University of Verona: Cleaning and preparation of complex datasets. Collaboration in the empirical analysis of the relationship between wine quality and international trade. Assistance in examinations in econometrics, microeconomics and macroeconomics. 

Attorney at law (02/2016 – 12/2017) Nizza’s Law Firm: Consultancy and defense in civil and labor lawsuits. Drafting of international opinions and agreements between the ILO and the Italian authorities. Negotiation and mediation of disputes. Assistance in criminal matters, pro bono in immigration law, and women victims of violence and trafficking.

Associate collaborator (03/2016 – 11/2016) UNESCO Center: Assistance in the negotiation of publishing contracts and the drafting of international agreements. Drafting of reports, memoranda, and letters of intent. Advise and assistance during negotiations with national and international authorities. Sporadic social interventions promoting of UNESCO activities in the Italian and Chinese territory. 

Teaching assistant (05/2015 – 07/2015) International labor standards, right at work and gender equality programme: preparation of reports, confidential documents and assistance in the teaching activities of the ITCILO Center. Updating of the platforms of the courses and the database of International Courts. Cooperation in the drafting of the book “International Labor Standards for Judges, Lawyers, and Legal Educators” in English, French, and Spanish. Collaboration in the implementation of the Gender Equality Academy project. 

Paralegal (03/2013 – 05/2015) Scola’s Law Firm: preparation of comparative studies and jurisprudential research. Drafting of documents, studies, legal opinions, and judicial documents. Participation in hearings in the civil and labor law sector. Collaboration in international due diligence operations. Attorney’s qualification obtained on 07/12/2015.

Judicial clerk (03/2012 – 09/2012) Court of Turin. Drafting of in-depth documents and jurisprudential studies. Assistance in trials and case selection. Participation in hearings, in partnership with the University of Turin.

GET IN TOUCH

If you would like to discuss academic collaborations or a specific paper, do not esitate to write me an email or contact me on my social medias.

AWARDS & FELLOWSHIPS

Ronald Coase Institute Workshop (scholarship)

Collegio Carlo Alberto & Compagnia di San Paolo (Ph.D. scholarship)

United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (scholarship)

Thomas Jefferson Law School (scholarship)

European Commission: Erasmus mobility scheme (beneficiary). Jean Monnet Module – RETEL (participant). Horizon2020/Prima – AGRICOMPET (participant) – EU COST ACTION CA20131 (participant)

Conferences attended

Italian Society of Law & Economics annual conference (an. conf.) (December 16-17, 2016). 5th World Interdisciplinary Network for Institutional Research an. conf. (Hong Kong, September 14-17, 2018). 10th IEL workshop (Turin, November 15, 2018). 11th Joint Seminar The Future of Law and Economics (Rotterdam, March 21-22, 2019). Workshop on Institutional Analysis (Warsaw, May 12-18, 2019). Advanced Graduate Workshop on Poverty, Development, and Globalization (Bangalore, July 8-21, 2019). Economic Analysis of Litigation Workshop (Granada, June 24-25, 2019). 36th European Association of Law and Economics an. conf. (Tel Aviv, September 18-20, 2019). 4th French Association of Law and Economics an. conf.(Rennes, October 10-11, 2019). Italian Society of Law & Economics an. conf. (Milan, December 19-21, 2019). Economic Analysis of Litigation Workshop (online, June 26, 2020). 37th European Association of Law and Economics an. conf. (online, September 24-25, 2020). The Coase-Sandor Global Lecture Series (online, September 10-24, 2020). 5th French Association of Law and Economics an. conf. (online, October 15-16, 2020). EMLE Midterm Conference (online, February 11, 2021). Norwegian Business School Virtual Political Economy Workshop (online, May 27-28, 2021). 8th International Meeting in Law & Economics (online, May 27-28, 2021). XVI Festival of economics of Trento (online/Trento, June 3-4, 2021). 8th Economic Analysis of Litigation Workshop (online, June 22, 2021). 8th Polish Law and Economics an. conf. (online, September 22, 2021). 38th European Association of Law and Economics an. conf. (online, September 9-10, 2021).6th French Association of Law and Economics an. conf. (Besançon, October 14-15, 2021). 17th Italian Society of Law and Economics an. conf. (Trento, December 15-17, 2021).

Language proficiency

Italian & Spanish (Mother-tongue) French & English (advanced)

DIGITAL SKILLS

European Computer Driving Licence.

Proficient in the use of Stata, SAS, Qgis, LateX, Microsoft Office, iWork, Photoshop, and Final Cut Pro.

Sporadic use of Python and PyTrends.

TUTORING and teaching

Evolving forms of employment relationships and decent work: Turin, May 11-15, 2015

International Labor Standards for Judges, Lawyers and Legal Educators. English-French version (Turin, June 22–July 3, 2015) and Spanish version (Brasilia, August 3-8, 2015).

1st Summer Academy of the YNET YSI Finance, Law and Economics: Turin, July 5-7, 2018

Advanced Graduate Workshop on Poverty, Development, and Globalisation: Bangalore, July 8-21, 2019

Cycle of seminars on innovation law and economic-quantitative analysis (Jean Monnet Module RETEL, University of Turin, 2022-2024)

Organizer of the Brown Bag Seminars of the Department of Economics