RP
Practice Area · 09

Agreements that hold, compliance that protects.

Cross‑border operations live and die by their paperwork. We draft, review and negotiate the contracts your business runs on, and keep your operation compliant with the rules that apply to it.

EN · PTBilingual drafting
48hStandard contract review
PreventionCheaper than litigation
Good to know

A contract signed abroad can be valid in Portugal, and still fail you here: governing law, jurisdiction and enforcement decide what happens when things go wrong. We check those clauses first. Send us a contract to review →

What we cover

The paperwork your operation runs on.

From the NDA that opens a negotiation to the compliance framework a regulator asks for, we keep the legal layer of your business solid.

FoundationService 01

Commercial contracts

Service, supply, distribution, agency and partnership agreements, NDAs and terms of business, drafted and negotiated in English and Portuguese with enforcement in mind.

Drafted to be enforced, not just signed
Service 02

Data protection & GDPR

Privacy policies, processing agreements, records of processing and data transfer mechanisms, sized to your actual operation rather than copied from a template.

GDPR compliance proportional to your real risk
Service 03

Regulatory compliance

Sector licensing, anti‑money laundering duties, beneficial owner registrations and the ongoing obligations regulators expect from companies operating in Portugal.

Obligations mapped before a regulator maps them for you
Service 04

Disputes & risk management

Pre‑litigation strategy, negotiated settlements, and representation when a dispute cannot be avoided, with a clear view of cost against outcome at every step.

Resolution strategy before escalation, litigation as last resort
The clauses that decide cases

What we read first in every contract.

When a deal goes wrong, the outcome was usually written on the day it was signed. These are the clauses that decide it.

Governing law

Which country's law rules the contract, and whether that choice actually helps you when a dispute starts.

Jurisdiction & forum

Where you would have to sue or be sued: courts, arbitration and whether a judgment can be enforced where the assets are.

Liability & caps

What each party answers for, up to how much, and the exclusions that quietly shift the entire risk to you.

Term & exit

How long you are bound, how you leave, and what notice, penalties or handover duties the exit triggers.

IP & confidentiality

Who owns what is created under the contract, and what each side may do with the other's information after it ends.

Language & versions

In bilingual deals, which version prevails. A single sentence that has decided entire cases.

How we work

From draft to signed and safe.

Scope review

We understand the deal, the counterparty and what you actually need protected, within 48 hours.

Draft or review

New agreements drafted, or received drafts reviewed with a clear risk map.

Negotiation

We negotiate the open points directly with the other side's counsel, in English or Portuguese.

Signature & filing

Execution formalities, registrations where required, and a clean final version in both languages.

Living compliance

Renewals, amendments and the ongoing obligations the contract created, tracked for you.

Common questions

Answers, before you ask.

Can my contracts be in English or French?
Between private parties, yes: contracts in English or French are generally valid in Portugal. Certain acts, registrations and consumer‑facing documents require Portuguese, and anything that may end up before a Portuguese court will need translation. We usually recommend bilingual versions with a clear prevailing‑language clause.
Can we choose a foreign law to govern the contract?
In most commercial relationships, yes. But choosing New York or English law means little if enforcement has to happen in Portugal against Portuguese assets. We look at the whole chain, law, forum and enforcement, and recommend the combination that actually protects you.
Does GDPR apply to my small business?
If you process personal data of people in the EU, yes, regardless of company size. What changes with size is the depth of the obligations. We build compliance proportional to your real processing, enough to be defensible, without drowning a small team in paperwork.
How long does a contract review take?
Our standard turnaround for a commercial contract review is 48 hours, with a written risk map and proposed redlines. Urgent deals can be prioritised, tell us the signing deadline and we work backwards from it.
Is arbitration better than court in Portugal?
It depends on the deal. Arbitration offers speed, confidentiality and easier international enforcement, at a higher upfront cost. Portuguese courts are slower but far cheaper for smaller disputes. We size the dispute clause to the value and profile of the contract, not to a default preference.
What compliance obligations does a new company in Portugal actually have?
At minimum: beneficial owner registration (RCBE), data protection duties if you handle personal data, sector licences where the activity requires them, and anti‑money laundering duties in regulated sectors. We map the exact list for your activity at incorporation, so nothing surfaces later as a surprise.

Your next signature deserves an answer today.

Send us the contract or describe the deal, and receive an initial risk view within 48 hours, with no obligation.