The paper critically analyses the implementation of the principle of the open competition rule in civil service recruitment procedures as enshrined in Art. 97, para. 4, of the Italian Constitution. After describing the emersion of the principle during the pre-constitutional period and the works of the Constituent Assembly, the paper focuses on the case-law of the Italian Constitutional Court which, over the years, has played a relevant role in limiting the frequent legislative attempts to overcome the open competition rule and thus has defined the conditions of derogation of the principle. The paper concludes by showing the limits and drawbacks of the current recruitment and selection system of civil servants in Italy, where the attempt to ensure the equal access of every citizen and to avoid favoritisms and maladministration has taken over the interest of the public administration in recruiting the best available candidates, i.e. the merit principle.