CIDP - Centro de Investigação de Direito Privado

Artificial Intelligence, Technology and Private Law

The advent of the Digital Era has changed social, economic and legal structures. The world we now live requires the Law to pay special attention to new issues, not previously encountered. The social relevance of personal data raises questions in the field of personality law, automation and artificial intelligence require the workings of civil liability to be reconsidered and the wide use of e-commerce demands study of online consumer rights. The new reality extends into finance, with a direct impact on investor rights and business funding models.

In addition, automation and artificial intelligence are both tools and challenges in courts. On the one hand, they promise to speed up and facilitate procedural acts, relieving judges, bailiffs and lawyers of repetitive and time-consuming tasks. But at the same time, insofar as they provide autonomous means of decision-making, they raise fundamental questions about the future meaning and nature of adjudication.

Finally, generative artificial intelligence raises relevant challenges in intellectual property law, namely as regards the protection of copyright and even the identity or nature of the author.

These trends and demands are not new. They were the subject of the last research line called Private Law in the Digital Era (PLDE). The current research line arises in the continuation of the work carried out at PLDE, integrating and focusing on the latest technological developments.

New Perspectives of Corporate Governance

The last few years have been marked by profound reforms in Commercial Company and Capital Market Law, especially at the level of European normative instruments.

Following on from the work conducted within the previous line of research called Modernization of Corporate Law, the current line New Perspectives of Corporate Governance will focus its attention on three topics: (i) the impact of technology on company law; (ii) the reformulation of corporate law structures as a result of the new centrality of stakeholder interests; (iii) the impact of ex contractu governance on the company and the limits of of private autonomy in shareholder agreements.

Diversity, Harmonization and Unification of Private Law

The study of Comparative Law studies, including its methodological foundations, is a central theme of CIDP's research activity. The diversity of modern Private Law coexists with a growing effort towards its harmonization and unification, which transcends the European space and is instrumental to the free flow of people, goods, services and capital across borders in a globalised economy.

This research line pays special attention to international instruments, particularly the CISG (which came into force in Portugal at the end of 2021), the UNIDROIT Principles on International Commercial Contracts, the Principles of European Contract Law and other relevant normative acts from the European Parliament and from the Council, which aim to approximate national legal systems in the field of Private Law.

The processes of harmonisation and unification of Private International Law – taken here as the discipline that regulates the international jurisdiction of courts, the determination of the law applicable to cross-border relationships, international judicial cooperation and the recognition of foreign judgments – are also a subject matter of this research line. In Europe and worldwide, Private International Law has known an intense movement towards its harmonisation over the past decades, which has been carried out in particular through European regulations and international conventions, such as the Hague Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, in force since 2023.

This research line seeks to study these processes in depth, and in particular their impact over the Portuguese legal system, where rules of Private International Law from domestic, European and international sources coexist, which are not always easy to combine.

In the context of this research line, particular attention will also be devoted to the legal systems of other Portuguese-speaking countries, which maintain a fundamental unity with Portuguese law. To this end, a permanent Lusophone Law Observatory will be set up, and the results of its work will be published internationally.

Foundations of Private Law

This line of research is devoted to the study of the historical, dogmatic and axiological foundations of Private Law, always seeking a deeper understanding of legal systems and their evolution.

The research projects to be developed cover the core areas of common and commercial Private Law, as well as its immediate foundations and instruments (Philosophy of Law and Methodology). It also involves studying the models of adjudication (specially linked with new morphologies of conflicts) including alternative dispute resolution (ADR).

This research line also includes the critical analysis of judicial activity (including its social and economic impact), as well as the survey and systematization of empirical data on that activity.

New Perspectives on Regulation, Compliance and Private Enforcement

The emergence of independent authorities has subverted the classic separation of powers model, which is why they have been endowed with three types of traditionally separate public powers: normative, executive and (para)judicial. Modern independent authorities issue regulations of a general and abstract nature, monitor and inspect the activity of businesses and, finally, impose financial penalties (fines) and ancillary sanctions if they detect offences. In this regard, it is difficult to sustain the classic opposition between administrative law and criminal law, especially since the European Court of Human Rights has consistently held that administrative offences and other typically administrative offences should be considered criminal offences for the purpose of applying Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which enshrines the right to a fair trial and the presumption of innocence. The social context of regulatory law requires a paradigm shift in the application of law and interaction with economic agents. Experience generally points to the advantages of an approach based on the principles of responsive regulation and regulated self-regulation. The balance between the two, however, requires a delicate balance between the requirements of effective regulation and the advantages of collaboration with businesses in the performance of this public law mission. In fact, the risks of this combination are immense and can only be minimised by establishing mechanisms to guarantee the independence and accountability of regulators and to prevent them from being captured by a wide range of interests, from party interests to business interests, which also involves transparency in the revolving doors between the exercise of regulatory functions, government functions and management functions of public, mixed or private companies. A virtuous articulation of responsive regulation with regulated self-regulation cannot ignore another pillar, which is the private enforcement of the law through actions for damages and collective redress brought by consumer representatives and others interested in promoting competition. Damages actions and collective redress often act as natural allies of more effective economic regulation and more efficient self-regulation, reinforcing the attitude of compliance on the part of companies by encouraging the prevention of legal risks that may arise from non-compliance. Any reflection on the intersecting themes of regulation, regulatory compliance and actions for damages and collective protection must value the experience of law in action, calling on the critical mass that accompanies matters of economic regulation and competition defence, adding national experience to the experience of other European countries and the European Union itself, but also to that of other reference legal systems, especially Anglo-Saxon ones, whose practice is inspiring for the European context. This line of research also includes the research project that has been developed in the field of judicial evidence, considering that evidential problems take on new dimensions in the context of the passage of information between regulators, intelligence agencies, criminal police agencies and criminal investigation holders, at the domestic level, but also at the cross-border level and not only in the European context. The research project encompasses the most general aspects of the theory of evidence and the dogmatic aspects of judicial evidence in the various regulated areas of economic activity, thus aiming to contribute to the development of an area of legal thought and practice that suffers from a lack of attention in civil law legal systems, compared to common law countries. It is a research project that involves ongoing articulations and partnerships with foreign research centres, which have already produced results in terms of national and foreign publications and scientific meetings in Portugal and abroad.

Rui de Mascarenhas Ataíde

With a degree in Law (1982), a Master's (1999) and a Doctorate (2013) in Legal-Civil Sciences from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon (FDUL), he is Professor at FDUL, where, since 1992, he has been teaching Introduction to the Study of Law, Law of Obligations, Family Law, Law of Succession, Rights in Rem, Contract Law I and II in the Undergraduate Course. In the Master's Degree Course in Law and Legal Practice, he is responsible for the subjects of Registrations and Notarial Services and Civil Liability Law, and in the Master's Degree Courses in Law and Legal Science and Doctorate, he is co-responsible for the subject of Civil Law (Civil Liability) with Professor Luís Menezes Leitão. In the Doctorate Course, he also coordinated the subject of Introduction to Private Law. He cooperated with the Bissau Faculty of Law and with the Mandume Ya Ndemufayo University Faculty of Law (Lubango). He is a guest speaker on Postgraduate Courses, Legal Conferences and Congresses organised by FDUL, FDUC, Centro de Estudos Judiciários and Almedina. He also practiced law in the office of Professor José Dias Marques. He is the author of several monographs, scientific articles, notes and lessons, namely, Private contract law in the face of the present pandemic crisis. Some problems, in particular temporary economic impossibility, RFDUL (Lisbon Law Review), Número Temático: COVID-19 e o Direito, Ano LXI, 2020, N. º 1, pp. 675-709, Institutionalised arbitration of Consumer Law disputes: notes on the scope of application of Law No. 144/2015 of 08 September (Mechanisms of Extrajudicial Resolution of Consumer Disputes) (co-authored with Inês Sítima Craveiro), International Journal of Arbitration and Conciliation - Year XIII - 2020, pp. 37-86, "Unfair terms in the insurance contract" Civil Law Magazine, Year V (2020), 1, pp. 115-125, "Criteria for ascertaining negligent fault" (co-authored with Inês Sítima Craveiro), O Direito Magazine, Year 152, II (2020), pp. 343-355, Os deveres no tráfego, Estudos Comemorativos dos 50 Anos do Código Civil, Lisbon, 2019, Código das Sociedades Comerciais Anotado (coordination of Professor Doctor António Menezes Cordeiro), 3rd edition (collaboration with Professor António Menezes Cordeiro in the annotation to articles 172 to 174 and 242 - A to 242. Civil Liability for Breach of Duties in Traffic (2015, to be reprinted in 2019), Civil Liability of Supervisory Authorities and Financial Regulation (2017), "The substantive effects of the Land Registry", ROA, Ano 77 - Vol. I/II - Jan./Jun. 2017, The sale of consumer goods (2017), Land Registry Studies (2017), Possession and Detention (2015), Causation and objective imputation in the theory of civil liability (2010), The liability of the "represented" in tolled representation (2008). He has been President of the Board of the IDC/Association for the Study of Consumer Law at FDUL since July 2014.

Intensive Courses

II Curso Intensivo de Intermediação Financeira

Os intermediários financeiros desempenham um papel central no funcionamento dos mercados de capitais contemporâneos. Para além de atuarem como elo entre a oferta – os emitentes – e a procura – os investidores–, os intermediários financeiros assumem-se como participantes ativos dos mercados, quer concebendo novos produtos financeiros, quer investindo a título próprio. As crises financeiras mais recentes evidenciaram uma outra dimensão do papel dos intermediários financeiros, enquanto guardiões do correto funcionamento dos mercados. Os intermediários financeiros representam uma primeira linha de defesa contra riscos sistémicos. Esta função, reconhecida pelo legislador europeu, espoletou uma densa e intrincada produção legislativa que visa, profilaticamente e através de complexos deveres de organização interna, proteger os clientesdos intermediários financeiros(especialmente, investidores não profissionais) e a integridade dos mercados de capitais. O CIDP, reunindo investigadores, advogados e supervisores, disponibiliza a todos os interessados o primeiro Curso, de matriz jurídica, inteiramente dedicado aos intermediários financeiros, abrangendo as diferentes facetas e dimensões do seu estatuto e atividade. OCurso dirige-se a intermediários financeiros e/ou seus colaboradores (com ou sem formação jurídica), reguladores,magistrados, e outros juristas eprofissionais familiarizados comos mercados financeiros,que pretendam atualizar ou aprofundar os seus conhecimentos. Pode também ser frequentado poralunos de licenciatura, mestrado e doutoramento.

30 Mai > 5 Jul 2025

Intensive Courses

III Curso Intensivo em Seguro de Acidentes de Trabalho

Depois de um I e de um II Curso Intensivo em Seguro de Acidentes de Trabalho (2019 e 2023), a AIDA Portugal e o CIDP lançam agora, em conjunto, uma 3.ª edição. O seguro de acidentes de trabalho coloca constantes problemas e desafios, desde a determinação dos sujeitos obrigados a contratá-lo, passando pelo seu âmbito de cobertura, exclusões, cúmulo com outros seguros, avaliação das incapacidades, pagamento da indemnização, até à intervenção do segurador no processo laboral. O Curso está organizado de forma a atender às necessidades dos destinatários: são desenvolvidos os temas fundamentais necessários a quem inicia ou pretende aprofundar o estudo deste seguro, e inclui, em simultâneo, uma relevante componente prática, destinada aos que com ele trabalham, das mais diversas perspectivas: profissionais do sector, empregadores, magistrados e advogados.

2 > 23 Jun 2025

Intensive Courses

VIII Curso Intensivo sobre Incumprimento do Contrato

O Curso Intensivo sobre o Incumprimento do Contrato é um curso que pretende proporcionar uma formação abrangente e holística sobre o incumprimento do contrato. Este curso oferece a reflexão sobre as várias modalidades de incumprimento e dos seus fundamentos, como a inexigibilidade, a impossibilidade e a alteração das circunstâncias. O curso promove a análise de temas clássicos conexos ao incumprimento como o relativo ao conceito de justa causa na resolução do contrato, o da interpretação do contrato, e o tema do ressarcimento e da restituição decorrentes do incumprimento do contrato, sem descurar qual tem sido o entendimento dos tribunais judiciais neste âmbito. Ademais, o curso oferece o tratamento das consequências decorrentes do incumprimento do contrato no processo de insolvência, aborda as dificuldades do cumprimento na compra e venda das empresas, expõe as especificidades do incumprimento de contratos públicos, dos acordos parassociais, dos contratos de arrendamento, do contrato-promessa, dos smart-contracts e dos contratos de financiamento.

7 Mai > 5 Jun 2025

Intensive Courses

IX Curso Intensivo de Preparação para Admissão ao CEJ

Encontra-se aberto o concurso de ingresso no Centro de Estudos Judiciários (CEJ) para o preenchimento de150 vagas para auditoras e auditores de justiça: 75 para a magistratura judicial e 75 para o Ministério Público (Aviso n.º 7191-B/2025/2). O Centro de Investigação de Direito Privado (CIDP) da Faculdade de Direito da Universidade de Lisboa organiza, assim, a nona edição do seu Curso de Preparação para Admissão ao CEJ, o qual será lecionado por um corpo docente de excelência e experiente, especificamente pensado para atender às necessidades dos juristas que, nesta fase, se preparam para o ingresso noCEJ. O Curso é composto por três módulos, correspondentes às áreas temáticas das três provas escritas. As sessões de cada módulo decorrerão em horário pós-laboral, antes das respetivas provas escritas, sendo calendarizadas com base nas datas previsíveis doCEJpara a 1.ª chamada dessas provas. O Curso oferece aos seus participantes sessões de preparação intensiva para as provas escritas sobre a generalidade dos tópicos programáticos elencados no Aviso, nas quais, no âmbito de uma revisão transversal dessas matérias, se privilegiará a análise de casos práticos e de jurisprudência, a elaboração de decisões judiciais e o esclarecimento de dúvidas sobre problemas concretos. Caracterizando-se pelo seu formato especialmente ajustado à preparação para cada uma das provas escritas e amplamente testado ao longo dos anos nas suas várias edições, o Curso dirige-se a todos aqueles que pretendam realizar os exames de ingresso noCEJ, na vertente da Magistratura para Tribunais Judiciais, bem como a todos aqueles que pretendam atualizar e aprofundar os seus conhecimentos nas matérias abrangidas.

23 Abr > 5 Jun 2025

Intensive Courses

III Curso Intensivo em Contratos Comerciais

Os contratos comerciais representam, na actualidade, a mais importante ferramenta jurídica na constituição, organização e exercício da actividade empresarial. Com efeito, as situações jurídicas mais relevantes concernentes à vida das empresas são tituladas por contratos mercantis cuja celebração viabiliza os normais processos de produção, circulação e distribuição de bens e serviços no mercado. Não por acaso, as necessidades específicas da actividade empresarial têm vindo a requerer regulações autónomas de contratos civis e, inclusivamente, categorias contratuais privativas.O III Curso Intensivo de Contratos Comerciais propõe-se, assim, transmitir uma perspectiva actualizada da contratação mercantil. O foco principal está concentrado nos contratos de distribuição e de intermediação, bem como na compra e venda comercial e nos negócios sobre o estabelecimento, oferecendo ainda sessões sobre outros temas nucleares, como o mútuo e a abertura de crédito, o seguro, o transporte de mercadorias e os “penhores marcianos”.