Rome - Italy's government expects the country's top court to rule in favour of a law shielding Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from prosecution, a cabinet minister said Monday. "We await with confidence the decision of the (Constitutional) Court," Justice Minister Angelino Alfano said.
The court will begin Tuesday final deliberations on whether an immunity law passed by Berlusconi's conservative coalition in 2008 complies with the constitution.
If there is consensus among the court's 15 judges, a decision could be taken within hours, otherwise it may take days or even weeks.
The law protects Italy's premier, president and two parliament speakers from prosecution while in office, but opposition leaders say it was tailor-made to help Berlusconi overcome his long-standing legal woes.
A ruling by the Court against the law could trigger a government crisis and even Berlusconi's resignation, according to a memo by the state lawyer's office and reported by Italian media in September.
But the leader of the highly vocal opposition Italy of Values party, Antonio Di Pietro said he believed Berlusconi would try to hold on to power irrespective of what the Court decides.
"Everything will remain the same because what you are living through dear citizens is a modern-day coup," Di Pietro a former anti-corruption magistrate wrote on his blog.
He also said more than 1 million signatures have been collected to launch a referendum against the law if the Court were to approve it.
Three-times premier and media magnate Berlusconi - over the course of his political career - has faced several legal battles, mostly stemming from charges of corruption and tax violations.
In one case Berlusconi is suspected of having paid 600,000 euros (875,000 US dollars) to a British lawyer and tax-haven specialist David Mills, in return for false testimony in two trials in the 1990s.
Berlusconi was originally a co-defendant in Mills' trial in Milan, but was struck from the case following the introduction of the immunity law.
Mills, who like Berlusconi denied any wrongdoing, in February received a four-and-half year sentence.
Berlusconi has repeatedly accused what he describes as Communist magistrates and prosecutors of carrying out a political vendetta against him.
In recent months controversy over the 73-year-old Berlusconi has mostly involved sex scandals, including his wife's decision to divorce over his links to an 18-year-old woman and allegations by a prostitute that she and several other women were paid to attend private parties hosted by the premier.
But a ruling over the weekend by a Milan civil court again cast the spotlight over the premier's legal problems.
Fininvest, the Berlusconi-controlled conglomerate was ordered to pay 750 million euros in damages to rival CIR, over damages resulting from the takeover of the Mondadori media group.
The case stems back to a 1991 deal in which Fininvest was given control over Mondadori media group by a Rome appeals court.
A court decision in 2007 found that Fininvest had bribed a judge to win favour over rival CIR, run by Carlo de Benedetti.
Berlusconi himself was not involved in the suit due to statute of limitations.
On Monday a judge said in arguments that Berlusconi was jointly responsible for corruption by his Fininvest company in the battle to buy Mondadori.
Berlusconi has denied all wrongdoing in the case in which Fininvest has indicated it intends to lodge an appeal.
