In each of the practice areas covered by Porfírio Azevedo Gomes Law Firm, the respective team conducts litigation in or out-of-court procedures, excelling and receiving recognition and renown in both. In the litigation area, the interests of clients are protected in and out of court; the firm files lawsuits, undertakes defenses, presents evidence, files and rebuts appeals at all court levels. In the extrajudicial arena, the firm provides advisory and consulting services and assistance services for the drafting of agreements or other legal instruments, aiming at preventing litigation and protecting businesses in such a way that even when a lawsuit proves to be unavoidable the interests of the clients would remain well guarded.
In these two fronts, the firm focuses on the fields of Civil Law, Commercial Law, Administrative Law, Labor Law and Tax Law. Such areas encompass specialized sectors that, because of the ever increasing demands of the business world, have assumed great importance and independence and therefore deserve special attention. These sectors are Real Estate Law (part of the Civil Law) and Corporate Law (part of Commercial Law and Civil Law).
The firm has a highly experienced team of professionals specialized in litigation and active at the various court levels, including appellate courts. The firm is qualified to represent clients at any Macanese court. It is prepared to file lawsuits against third parties and to defend clients in any suits brought against them.
Civil Law
The Team of Porfírio Azevedo Gomes Law Firm works in all fields of Civil Law, offering advisory and consulting services, as well as defending the interests of clients in judicial processes. This is the most extensive field of Private Law. In addition to real estate transactions, to Family Law and Succession Law and Probate, other areas stand out because of their importance in Civil Law:
- Contractual obligations, contracts in general, special contracts, such as purchase contract, donation contract, barter contracts, lease contracts (eviction suits, renewal suits and lease review suits), services agreements, accommodation loan, insurance and atypical contracts;
- Extra contractual obligations liability for damages caused by malice or guilt, liability of companies for employee acts, traffic accidents, fire, occupational accidents that go beyond the scope of labor medicine and fall under civil liability of common law, liability of doctors and hospitals for damages caused to patients, and others;
- Personal image rights, intellectual property rights;
- Rights in rem property, possession, mortgage, pledge, usufruct, possession issues, repossession issues, demarcation issues, petitory action, adverse possession, easement, etc.
JUDICIAL AND EXTRAJUDICIAL COLLECTION: In this area, the experienced professionals of the firm always strive to reach solutions that are in the client’s best interests and to optimize collection of receivables through negotiation or, if necessary, by filing pertinent actions.
Family Law
Since this body of laws deals with the private relationship between spouses, parents and children and between relatives, the intervention of people outside of this family circle is usually undesirable. It is much healthier if family problems are solved in a conciliatory manner between interested parties, dispensing with solutions imposed by the Judiciary. Moreover, litigation is usually stressing, lengthy and has serious emotional consequences. In light of this, Porfírio Azevedo Gomes Law Firm, as a rule, attempts to resolve family issues by way of conciliation which should never be confused with yielding. To defend the interests and the dignity of its clients, the firm will be ready to go to court, only as a last resort.
The following procedures are the ones most frequently undertaken by this firm:
- Prenuptial agreements
- Separation (consensual or contentious), divorce
- Marriage annulment
- Establishment and dissolution of cohabitation
- Preliminary injunction for separation from bed and board, search and seizure of minors and property listing
- Alimony suits (demanded or offered), review, exoneration and execution of alimony
- Child custody and visitation rights
- Suspension and loss of family power (paternal power)
- Paternity suit, birth certificate annulment suit, paternity negation suit
- Remedial court consent
- Disability and emancipation
- Alienation of the property of incapable persons
Succession Law
Succession Law comprises the following procedures:
- Probate proceedings for the settlement of estates
- Wills (preparation, revoking, disinheritance and probate) and codicils
- Succession Planning
- Estate petition, withdrawing action, declaration of absence, estate in abeyance
Commercial Law
The firm, throughout its history, has acquired vast experience in contracts and settlements, as well as in issues dealing with Civil and Commercial Law. Its activities are not confined to non-contentious matters. In fact, it has benefited from the experience of countless litigation processes aimed at protecting and reviewing contracts and at demanding the compliance with obligations. Moreover, the firm has been able to settle innumerable acquisition contracts, in processes that have included the establishment of legal relations between the parties and also the analysis, in and out of court, of the implications of such acquisitions for third parties. In the field of Commercial Law, the firm operates in the following areas:
- Negotiation and drafting of commercial agreements in general, whether typical or atypical and their reviews
- Collection and execution of obligations and securities
- Dispute resolution (arbitration or court)
- Assistance in settlements
Corporate Law
In the corporate and commercial areas, the firm provides a full range of legal counseling services to help companies prepare and review national and international agreements. The firm draws on the expertise of its team of professionals to meet various corporate needs such as the setting up of companies, joint ventures and consortia, transformation of companies from privately to publicly-held and vice-versa, mergers and acquisitions, due diligence procedures, foreign quotaholder / shareholder representation, corporate restructuring and takeovers, management buyouts, public offerings, attendance at company management and general shareholders meetings, and other matters that may require protection of clients’ interests.
The Corporate Law practice has been one of the highlights of the law firm ever since it was established. Activities in this field are not limited to contract negotiation and drafting, but also encompass active participation in corporate litigation. Some of the firm’s areas of expertise are summarized below:
- Incorporation of companies, based on a prior analysis of the needs of clients to determine the most appropriate type of company, incorporation of holding companies and joint ventures
- Legal advisory and consulting for the day-to-day corporate management of specific activities
- Ownership reorganization
- Corporate planning
- Consolidation, split-up, merger, spin-off
- Asset purchase and selling
- Assistance in acquisition processes
- Due diligence
- Successor issues and liabilities
- Family concerns, their management and succession issues
- Negotiation and preparation of shareholder agreements/quotaholder agreements
- Assistance in the organization of corporate accounting records and corporate documents
- Settlement of corporate disputes (amicable, arbitration or judicial)
- Contracts in general
- Assistance in the organization of shareholder meetings and board meetings
- Corporate litigation in general, including dissolution of companies, exclusion of partners, execution and collection of capital increases, management liabilities
Arbitration Law
The firm is well prepared to act in arbitration procedures and is well acquainted with the rules of the World Trade Arbitration Center of Macau.
The firm is able to assist its clients in the signing of agreements containing an arbitration / mediation clause. The firm is perfectly qualified to act as negotiator, mediator and / or arbitration judge for reputed institutions. The firm has special rooms reserved for mediation meetings to ensure the confidentiality that such matters call for.
Real Estate Law
The firm can offer comprehensive legal advisory on real estate development, in its varied forms and particularities. It provides highly specialized services to developers, builders, inventors, financial institutions and corporate clients including post-construction issues. Legal services in this area include, among others:
- Drafting contracts;
- Analysis of real estate documentation and preparation of the respective legal diagnosis;
- Legal support for real estate developers of residential buildings, office buildings and residential condominiums.
- Matters under the Urban Development Law, Right to Build in general, use of land and construction compensation;
- Matters under Register Law and Notarial Law;
- Administrative procedures before the government bodies in charge of approving construction projects;
- Construction errors and resulting liabilities;
- Legal organization and contract drafting for clients’ partnerships in specific developments.
The services offered by the firm in this area encompass from the drafting of purchase, sale and lease agreements to the examination of rural and urban property deeds and scrutinizing of properties’ legal and tax status.
Tax Law
Companies need to be aware of the tax burden on their activities, production and income. Preventive assistance and consulting, in addition to the clarification of tax liabilities to clients, may result in significant savings as business activities are better adjusted to tax requirements. Clients are then able to make informed decisions regarding their business, thereby preventing tax inspections and heavy fines.
Consultations and legal opinions have responded to issues in Tax Law and Administrative Law, dealing more specifically with immunities, exemptions, taxation on damages and partnerships in public administration.
This firm specializes in providing legally available tax-planning opportunities that minimize clients’ tax liabilities and in preventing damages or threats of damages.
The initial focus is on preventive actions aiming at tax avoidance in different areas (corporate, real estate, family and inheritance, among others) or for penalty and fine prevention.
When an administrative process is filed against a client, the firm defends the client and, if needed, files appeals with the corresponding administrative bodies.
The rights of taxpayers may also be defended through jurisdictional custody. When that proves to be necessary, companies may take to court tax issues that they consider adverse to their interests. To increase the possibility of a favorable judgment the matter should receive appropriate legal treatment from the beginning with an accurately worded appeal, active conducting and efficient follow-through, aiming for a fast conclusion of the process. In many cases, it is also necessary to obtain preliminary injunction or provisional measures, as well as advancement of rights, to prevent the right from expiring due to delays in the issuing of a favorable final decision.
The firm also assists clients in filing proceedings or appeals related to tax assessments at the various administrative levels.
Finally, it should be pointed out that the firm also provides services to partners and managers of companies, defending them from tax liabilities of the companies that they manage.
Administrative Law
Our law firm offers advisory for Public Law litigation and for agreements between legal entities of the private sector with government bodies and agencies, particularly in the area of bidding, concession and commercial defense of companies.
Examples of its activities include.
- Civil action for mismanagement liability
- Claims, in and out of court, requesting the review of economic and financial aspects of administrative contracts
- Challenge of violation notices issued by different government bodies, including those concerning land use and occupation and environmental legislation
- Guidance in the formation of consortiums or in the incorporation of specific-purpose companies
- Regulation of concession services: guiding clients in their relations with public utility companies and guiding public utility companies in their relations with their respective Regulatory Agencies
- Assistance and advisory in the analysis of or in challenging bidding procedures as of the pre-qualification stage
- Assistance and advisory in matters related to concessions
- Assistance and advisory to clients in competition and consumer issues
The firm has more than 20 years of experience in representing its clients in public competitive bidding processes, checking all documents listed in the invitations, filing necessary appeals, answers and / or oppositions.
Labor Law
In labor litigation:
- Follow-through of lawsuits at all levels
- Defense of labor grievances filed by employees
In labor consulting:
- Analysis and drafting of individual or collective labor agreements
- Labor procedures
In this area, the firm provides a full spectrum of services from labor claims to labor structuring logistics involving hiring and other corporate activities.
Environmental Law
The team of the Environmental law practice represents, defends and advises clients in matters regarding environmental issues and the requirements of local environmental laws. It undertakes:
- Advisory for environmental permit obtainment;
- Administrative action;
- Enjoinment of construction work, real estate development and industrial development;
- Public civil actions regarding the environment;
- Analysis of environmental compensatory damages.
Consumer Law
In this field, the firm offers its clients preventive advisory and litigation support, guiding them as to legal requirements and defending their interests should consumers file complaints against them with the different consumer protection agencies. Such legal advice can be provided to all classes of suppliers, such as manufacturing companies, merchants, real estate companies, advertising agencies, financial institutions, etc.
International Law
The firm can offer a full range of counseling services to foreign companies interested in investing in Macau. Advice regarding local law ranges from follow-up on all legal requirements to operate in Macau-organizing the company, drafting bylaws or articles of incorporation, and registration with the competent agencies. The firm also handles the obtaining of work-permit visas for foreign employees the company brings to Macau. The firm is also experienced in securing ratification of foreign judgments by the Macau Supreme Court.
Relying on a network of associated law firms in USA, Canada, Australia, Latin America Europe and Asia, on correspondents in Lisbon, Porto (Portugal), Amsterdam (Holland), Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing (China) and in major Brazilian capital cities, on European Association of Lawyers (AEA) members and on its office in Macau, the team of PORFÍRIO AZEVEDO GOMES Law Firm can offer:
- Legal counseling to foreign clients who want to enter into agreements with Macau companies or to Macau companies that wish to do business abroad;
- Consulting to Macau companies that do business abroad, in partnership with law firms in the respective countries, if necessary;
- Legal counseling to foreign clients who want to enter into agreements with Brazilian companies or to Brazilian companies that wish to do business with Chinese companies;
- Incorporation of companies with foreign ownership;
- Advisory for legal foreign investments in Macau and cash remittance;
- Representation of foreign companies before Banks and Government Departments of Macau;
- Consulting services in China, through associated law offices in Beijing and in Shanghai, consulting services in Chinese Law;
- Assistance for expatriated executives who need Macau visas.
RATIFICATION OF FOREIGN JUDGMENTS IN MACAU: The firm represents foreign clients when they need ratification of foreign judgments, arbitration reports, compliance with letters rogatory, and any follow-up on cases being examined by the Macau Supreme Court.
The firm also provides support services overseas through its partnerships with leading legal firms in several countries. Its clients thus have access to great number of local legal services such as follow-up on proceedings in course, filing of lawsuits and follow-up on mediation, negotiation and alternative forms of resolving disputes.
Furthermore, we have recently become a member of European Association of Lawyers (AEA), as it was already herewith mentioned. Therefore, we are able to be in permanent contact with these international legal networks, to provide a high quality of legal service with a high standard of professionalism, competence and efficiency to our clients.
Intellectual Property Law
The firm provides consulting services in this field for trademark and patent registration, preparation and examination of trademark and patent licensing agreements, technology transfer, technical service and software transfers, drafting and examination of franchising agreements, copyrights, etc.
Notary Services
Sale and purchase of commercial, industrial and resident properties; acquisitions from private or government source; tenders; arranging and discharging mortgages and other charges over commercial; industrial and residential properties. Agreement for sale and purchase. Leasing and Tenancy Agreements in commercial, industrial and resident premises. Land searches. Incorporation Services. Incorporation of Limited Companies. Company Searches. Business Registrations, etc.