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Support for Shareholder Agreements in Portugal

You need the right terms for your business venture.

Our corporate lawyers will guide you through the process step-by-step.

How can a lawyer help me?

If your company needs legal documentation and corporate governance, our lawyers are here to help. Our corporate lawyers can adapt any paperwork to be aligned with the law and create a binding contract. We also work from the guidelines or start with an entirely blank document. We can also translate documents into Portuguese written in other languages to be as compatible with Portuguese law as possible.

Our corporate lawyers are proactive and share their knowledge. They suggest additions or changes that the potential shareholders wouldn’t have otherwise understood. This commitment to being thoughtful and customer-centric helps our clients with the following: 

  • Relationship between the future shareholders in the prospective company
  • Relationship between the prospective company and its shareholders
  • Management and governance of the future company
  • Company’s internal structure.
  • The corporate purpose of the company.
  • Conditions affecting the shares of the company.
  • How the shares are distributed among the shareholders and how they can be traded.

Lexidy’s lawyers will also highlight which proposed shareholder measures or terms are counter to the law and find appropriate alternatives.

¨We will be with you each step of the journey.¨

 

What is a Shareholders Agreement?

A shareholder’s agreement is a contract between the future shareholders of a company. The contract determines matters like corporate governance and related subjects. This would include voting rules and other relevant topics within limits set by law.

 

In Portugal, a shareholders’ agreement is between all or some shareholders and defines what terms and conditions the parties should follow. These terms must be legal, but there are a few limitations. Typically the terms focus on voting rights.

We recommend shareholders’ agreements when multiple people are involved in a specific business venture. This agreement allows for different points of view to be considered and accordingly structured while ensuring legal binding.

Important information is that the document must be enforceable. If a contract is not enforced, the Portuguese Civil Code allows for compensation and damages.

How is this document produced?

A lawyer usually drafts the shareholders’ agreement in accordance with the client’s decisions and commitments. At Lexidy, we work with you to ensure that your corporate governance objectives are met. We act in your best interest to produce a legally binding document that supports your objectives in the way that best suits your interests.

What are the requirements?

In Portugal, Shareholders’ Agreements can be signed privately between the shareholders and a lawyer or before a public notary. 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

In Portuguese law, this type of agreement is only regarded as binding between the parties and not to companies or partners.

The Portuguese law states that agreements based on voting are void if the individual agrees to:

  1. Always follow the instructions of the company or one of its governing bodies;
  2. Constantly approving proposals made by them;
  3. Exercise the right to vote or abstain from voting for special advantages.

One of the very first documents for any company is its bylaws. The bylaws contain essential elements such as where the company is located, what it does, and more. 

A shareholders agreement is a contract registered in the commercial registry. This document outlines the rights and duties of the shareholders of a company.

By being registered, there is less discretion over how to apply them.

It’s highly recommended when multiple parties are involved in the same business project. The aim is to structure it in a way that prevents future conflicts and is legal.

A shareholder agreement outlines how partners interact with each other. It also outlines what will happen if there are any disputes between the shareholders in the future. 

OUR WORK

We are a department formed by qualified legal experts who have been trained in the field of corporate law. We work on these requests every day and it’s our passion. For us, Lexidy is a way of life and what excites us the most is to be able to deliver the happiness and satisfaction of a successful process. We want to help you achieve your goals and dreams.

Vitória Galli

Vitória Galli

Lawyer
Maria Eduarda

Maria Eduarda

Legal Trainee
Rita

Rita Figueiredo

Lawyer, Head of Lisbon

IS TO MAKE CLIENTS HAPPY

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