Skip to main content

I FOUND THAT THE PROPERTY I PURCHASED HAS DEFECTS, WHAT CAN I DO NOW?

Every consumer purchase is covered by a mandatory legal guarantee. As long as you are a consumer, no seller can claim otherwise.

Legally, the property must not suffer from any defect which has a negative impact on its value or which renders its regular use impossible. If these warranties are breached, the consumer can choose between repair, replacement, refund or a price reduction. However, the buyer must notify the seller of defects within one year of their discovery.

If the property is newly built, the purchaser will also benefit from a five-year warranty period. According to Art. 1225 of the Civil Code, the seller is liable for damages in respect of certain defects during five years, if he has also constructed, repaired or modified the building.

POPULAR

THE ART OF MAKING CONCESSIONS

A negotiation is a little drama, and each concession is a sacrifice made for the sake of the own negotiation. When was the last time you went to a street market? It is an excellent place to learn how to negotiate. See how the towels seller cries about the possibility of his own personal bankruptcy whenever he makes you a little discount. Have you small children? If so, you have already realised that you have little chances of winning any negotiation process. I usually do not. Children are better negotiators than anyone else. They don't hesitate to use whatever it takes to make us give up our position. A tantrum in the supermarket is a legitimate weapon. How can we be as much effective as children?

Try to devalue the concessions of your interlocutor and value yours as much as you can. This way it is possible that the other party will eventually make more concessions than those initially intended.  Don´t mention or make any comment on it, as if the other party´s concessions were so…
Read more

WHAT IS A TRADEMARK AND WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO REGISTER IT IN PORTUGAL?

A trademark is a sign that identifies products or services that exist or is going to be launched in the marketplace. Trademarks enable us to distinguish a company’s products or services from those of other companies.

A trademark can comprise letters or words (verbal trademark), but may also be composed of pictures (pictorial trademark), or both (mixed trademark). It is also possible to register sounds as trademarks (recorded graphically on staves - sound trademark), as well as three-dimensional shapes (three-dimensional trademark). Trademarks can also be made up of advertising slogans, independently of any Copyright protection they may enjoy.

If the trademark is pictorial or contains a mix of words and pictures, you need to attach a picture of the trademark for publication in the Industrial Property Bulletin. This should be on A4 paper, no larger than 8cm x 8cm, and no smaller than 3cm in at least one of its dimensions. The image for publication should be of good technical quality and…
Read more

NUMBER OF NEW COMPANIES RISES

Business formation with new businesses having been started in Portugal went up in 2017. Over 3,687 new companies were registered in Lisbon (14.5% more than in 2016), while Porto registered 7,107 new firms (5% up on the previous year).

On the other hand, business failures in Portugal fell 12.7% in 2017 compared with 2016 to 6,284, while the number of new companies being set up rose 9.1%, to 40,465. Lisbon and Porto saw the highest number of bankruptcies – 1,683 and 1,330 respectively, but these were still 2.4% and 15.4% lower than in 2016.

Read more

BANK VALUATION OF HOUSES CONTINUES TO RISE

The price of the square meter in the country was valued at 1,141 euros, the highest value since May 2011.

The banking valuation of houses has increased for seven consecutive months. The price at which banks evaluate households when granting housing loans doesn't stop rising. The trend of this indicator accompanies the upward trend in house prices in Portugal.

According to the official data, the average value of the bank evaluation of the homes in October was 1,141 euros per square meter. This figure corresponds to an increase of six euros compared to the value registered in the previous month and is also the highest level since May 2011.
Read more

CTA 2018. PORTUGAL IS ONE OF THE 13 WORLD CHAMPIONS OF INNOVATION

In the world's largest technology fair, there are no doubts: Portugal is among the 13 international champions of innovation, alongside countries like Finland, United Kingdom, Sweden, Singapore, Canada, Czech Republic, Austria, Denmark and New Zealand.

Among the 12 items evaluated, Portugal excelled in four:
- freedom (it is among the countries with more political and individual freedom);
- drones (it is among the countries where the best technology for drones is born);
- short-term rentals (countries with the best conditions to rent a house for a short time) and;
- environment (it is among the countries with the best water and air quality).

International Innovation Scorecard, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) identifies the critical areas of national policy that spur innovation, and reveals the areas in which countries may be stunting their own growth and preventing global innovation from blossoming to its full potential.
Read more