Supported Arbitration Centres

The Ministry of Justice, through the DGPJ, provides technical and financial support to a number of Arbitration Centres in areas of significant social importance and interest to citizens.

Consumer Arbitration

Consumer disputes are those that may arise from the acquisition of goods or services by a consumer, when the good or service acquired is intended for non-professional use.

Consumer disputes are not considered to be those between professionals.

Examples of situations in which consumer disputes can arise:

Purchase and sale of retail goods (for example, disputes relating to services provided by launderettes or the purchase of computer equipment or household appliances);
Essential public services - supply of water, electricity, gas, sewage treatment, telecommunications, postal services and passenger transport;
Car repair services, resale of fuels, oils and lubricants, purchase and sale of new and used cars and car parts, as well as services provided by companies that own car parks;
Aggressive sales;
Purchase of financial products and disputes arising in relations between consumers and banks (such as charges arising from current accounts);
Purchase of holiday packages (travel agencies).

The Directorate-General for Consumers, with the support of the Agency for Administrative Modernisation, has created a simulator with the aim of helping consumers know which entities they can resort to in order to resolve their consumer disputes.

Arbitration in the Insurance Sector

CIMPAS - Insurance Information, Mediation and Arbitration Centre, is competent to hear disputes relating to the formation, execution and/or termination of any insurance contracts.

Examples of situations in which disputes may arise in the insurance sector:

road accidents, including those resulting in bodily injury (does not include death or permanent disability);
taking out multi-risk insurance (household and commercial, up to €50,000.00);
taking out civil liability insurance (family, farm, hunter and use and carrying of weapons, up to a limit of €50,000.00).

Arbitration for Industrial Property, Domain Names, Firms and Denominations

Disputes in the field of industrial property, domain names, trade names and appellations can occur:

between two or more private individuals;
between a private individual and the entities responsible for registering trademarks, patents and .pt domain names and addresses, the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), the Institute of Registries and Notaries (IRN) and the DNS.PT Association.

Examples of situations:

a company that believes that another company is commercialising a product using a chemical formula protected by its registered patent;
a citizen who has been refused registration of their company name by the IRN;
someone who already has a registered trade mark and cannot register their domain name because it is already being used by another organisation.

Administrative and Tax Arbitration

Disputes arising from public law, administrative and tax matters can also be resolved outside the traditional courts.

Examples of situations:

A civil servant who thinks that a disciplinary sanction that has been imposed is illegal;
A supplier to a public organisation who considers that a contract has not been fulfilled;
A taxpayer who disagrees with the value that is attributed to their home for tax purposes or the amount that is deducted monthly from their salary by way of withholding tax.