PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: João Perry da Câmara, Teresa Silva Tavares, Sofia Vaz Pardal and Joana Salazar Gomes, Rogério Alves & Associados
the amount due be paid directly by the employer to the creditor. The international enforcement of financial orders, namely concerning alimony, is permitted in Portugal. Specifically, Portugal has to apply Regulation (EC) No 4/2009, dated 18 December 2008, in relation to alimony arising out of a family relationship, parentage, marriage or affinity. The Regulation provides measures to facilitate the payment of alimony in cross-border situations. It regulates the way the orders should be enforced, whether issued by member states that are also obliged by the Hague Protocol of 2007 or by states not obliged under that Protocol. 2.8 Media Access and Transparency In Portugal, family judicial processes are confi - dential, so only the lawyers and the parties can gain access. Parties are free to speak about the processes in which they are involved, but where processes relate to minors, they have the duty not to expose details relating to the children. Also, when one of the parties decides to dis - close procedural information, they must take into consideration the personal data protection act, which limits the possibility of public disclo - sure of personal data concerning any individual. 2.9 Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) In Portugal, mediation is available as an alterna - tive dispute resolution. It is not mandatory, and for that reason, there are no penalties for non- compliance. If the parties decide to use media - tion and they are able to reach an agreement, depending on the agreement concerned, differ - ent steps need to be taken. For instance, a divorce must always be decreed either by a judge or by a civil registry chief officer.
An agreement reached concerning parental responsibilities must always be supervised by the Public Prosecutor and approved by the court or by the civil registry chief officer. An agreement in relation to the division of assets involving real estate must be formalised in a public deed.
3. Child Law 3.1 Choice of Jurisdiction
According to Portuguese law and the EU Regu - lations that Portugal must comply with, the rule is that a court’s international competence is determined by the child’s habitual residence. In exceptional circumstances, the court of a member state with jurisdiction to decide on the merits of a case can, on its own motion or at the request of one of the parties, suspend the pro - cess if it considers that a court of another mem - ber state with which the child has a particular connection is better placed to evaluate the best interests of the child, determining a deadline for the process to be transferred to the other court. The most important item for a court to decide about a child is the consideration of their best interests. 3.2 Living/Contact Arrangements and Child Maintenance Each parent can ask the court to regulate the exercise of parental responsibilities, defining the following: • with whom the child will live; • whether the child will live with both parents (for instance, a week with each one);
245 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook