4 June 2023 – We worked for almost 2 years with Studio Legale Metta (SLM) in order to obtain my wife’s Italian Citizenship by descent while living in the Italian city of Lucca, and my long-term visa for entry into Italy. Their work on my long-term visa application at the Boston Italian Consulate was excellent, keeping in mind that I provided them with all the information required to complete the application package. The associate who worked with me was consistently responsive, helpful and professional.

I would rate his work as 5 stars. The application for my wife’s citizenship application was understandably more complicated, requiring the submission of a multitude of authenticated documents (that we provided) that were needed to prove her Italian bloodline. We felt confident based on our preparatory work and SLM’s opinion on the content of these documents that they had translated, met all the requirements of the City of Lucca and the Italian Government.

Without going into excessive detail, we feel that SLM’s work was generally satisfactory but on occasion their level of communication and follow-up with us was lacking in timeliness and a “sense of urgency” that we expect from a law firm of this caliber. These issues were partially addressed through a staff change made later in the process at SLM (in response to our expressed concerns). It is worth noting that we believe cultural issues play a role here and that we have a set of relatively high expectations and standards based on our experience.

Nevertheless, it is our opinion that there could have been a more proactive approach taken with the city of Lucca. Apparently, municipalities put a different twist on the general process, and perhaps SLM could have better prepared and anticipated some of the issues we encountered. In the end however, and after about one year, my wife did obtain her citizenship and our overall goal was achieved with SLM insuring we reached the finish line.

We thank them for their overall graciousness, cordiality and professional service, and would recommend SLM with the caveat that they should perhaps improve their client communication timeliness and better prepare for the specific needs of the municipality in question. On a final note, we believe that their work was fairly priced and presented in a package form so that all the services we required were cleared identified.