PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: José Luís da Cruz Vilaça and Mariana Tavares, Antas da Cunha Ecija
5. Choice of Jurisdiction 5.1 Rules on Jurisdiction and Applicable Law Jurisdictional rules are governed by Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and Coun - cil, dated 12 December 2012 (Brussels I bis), which addresses jurisdiction as well as the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. The determination of the applicable law for tort claims is governed by the Regulation (EC) No 864/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on the law applicable to non-contractual obliga - tions (Rome II), whereas contractual obligations fall under the scope of the Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 on the law applicable to contractual obliga - tions (Rome I). In situations where neither regulation nor any other international treaty applies, national conflict-of-law principles will be used to establish the relevant law. The party seeking to rely on foreign law bears the burden of proving its existence and content. This is without prejudice to the parties’ autonomy to select the applicable law, provided such choice is permitted under the applicable legal framework. In Portugal, the discovery process differs significantly from that in common law jurisdictions, as there is no general right to broad pre-trial disclosure. Portuguese law does not permit extensive fishing expeditions or indiscriminate requests for document production. Par - ties are not obliged to disclose all evidence in their possession, whether favourable or adverse to their case. Under the Private Damages Act, however, both claim - ants and defendants must specify the evidence they intend to rely on to support their factual assertions. Either party may request the production of particular documents, provided these are clearly identified and the request satisfies the legal requirements of rele - 6. Disclosure/Discovery 6.1 Disclosure/Discovery Procedure
outlined in the Class Action Act, which applies broadly across areas including consumer protection, environ - mental law and public health. In the competition law context, collective claims for damages are governed by the Private Damages Act, which supplements the general framework with specific provisions tailored to antitrust cases. 4.2 Opting In or Out In Portugal, the standard regime for collective redress follows an opt-out model. However, in competition damages actions, consumers residing outside Por - tuguese territory are subject to an opt-in mechanism, requiring them to expressly indicate their intention to Both direct and indirect purchasers are entitled to claim damages in private antitrust actions. However, individual consumers do not have standing to bring representative actions under the applicable legal framework. Such actions must be brought by qualified entities or associations acting on behalf of affected consumers. 4.4 Class Certification be included in the proceedings. 4.3 Direct/Indirect Purchasers Portuguese law does not provide for a formal class certification procedure. However, before a class action may proceed, the court conducts a preliminary assessment of the claim. At this stage, the court may summarily dismiss the action if it finds, for example, that the claim is manifestly unfounded or that the class has not been properly defined. While there is no distinct certification phase, issues relating to the definition and composition of the class may be raised throughout the proceedings. These matters can be addressed in the initial claim, chal - lenged by the defendant in the statement of defence, or examined during various stages of the process, including the preliminary or case management hear - ing, the final hearing, or in response to any request from the court for further clarification.
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