Latest news and stories about legal reforms in Setúbal, Portugal for expats and residents.
The Almada Court has ordered the Ministry of Education to place a student with special educational needs in a local school equipped with the necessary support resources within three working days.
PCP leader Paulo Raimundo reaffirms the party's opposition to the government's labour package on the eve of a general strike, emphasizing the need to protect workers' rights and parental benefits.
Investigative piece on the collapse of consumer protections in Palmela where more than 120 families — including expat buyers — lost everything after developers repeatedly sold the same house, in some cases up to four times. The report highlights systemic failures: an apparently unpunished builder, gaps in property and consumer law, and a market environment that erodes buyer confidence. It argues for urgent legal reform to protect purchasers and prevent further families being defrauded.
The hearing did not take place due to the judge's illness. The Mayor of Sesimbra, who is an assistant in the case, was present at the court.
The fraud affected 45 buyers of planned housing developments.
The helmsman of the recreational fishing boat that sank in April 2024 near Troia was sentenced this Friday, October 9, to four years and six months in prison, suspended for five years, for the deaths of four occupants, including a child. The Setubal Court ruled that the man, Manuel Coelho, acted recklessly and with excessive confidence by heading to sea on a particularly rough day. Coelho, the sole survivor of the incident, was the owner of the vessel Lingrinhas. The accident occurred on April 7, when the group went out to catch cuttlefish. The boat sank around 07:00, but maritime authorities were only alerted three hours later. The victims, ranging from 11 to 45 years old, were recovered over several days following the tragedy.
The sole survivor of the shipwreck was convicted but will not serve jail time
Hugo Dias was beaten with punches and kicks and ended up dying as a result of the assaults.
Six undocumented immigrants detained by the National Republican Guard (GNR) last week will be expelled from Portugal and held in custody until deportation. The coercive measures were announced this Wednesday, September 30, following hearings at the Santiago do Cacém Judicial Court. A seventh immigrant detained in the same operation was released under an Identity and Residence Term (TIR). The individuals, aged between 20 and 47, are of various nationalities. The GNR informed DN that two are Indian, two are Bangladeshi, one is Colombian, and one is Brazilian. The immigrant not subject to deportation is from Mozambique. The migrants were detained during a GNR inspection of foreign citizens at an agricultural farm, a nursing home, and a construction site, where several cases of illegal stay were detected. The GNR stated it continues to conduct inspections as part of its border authority duties to ensure compliance with current legislation. These detentions fall under new, faster deportation rules recently enacted by the government.
The decision comes after the child's mother took legal action.
Strasbourg judges deemed the complaint from the parents of five of the six students from Lusófona University of Lisbon to be “manifestly ill-founded.”
The Almada Administrative and Tax Court accepted a lawsuit filed by parents who wanted their son to be placed in a school in their area of residence with the appropriate pedagogical resources.
Court determines that the child must be placed in a school that has the appropriate resources
The court's decision followed a lawsuit filed by the child's parents, who wanted their son with special educational needs to be placed in a school within their area of residence.
Público reports this Wednesday, September 16, that requests for gender reassignment have soared following a legal review. According to the newspaper, 205 gender changes were registered in March and April, compared to 71 in the same months of 2025. Among those under 18, there was a 9.7% decrease in the first half of the year. The newspaper also highlights families who still do not know where their children will study, citing the case of Tomás, who has a placement but cannot attend school because the institution lacks the resources to meet his needs; the case is in court. Correio da Manhã highlights the case of an eight-year-old student with cerebral palsy who was placed 300 kilometres from home in the wrong year: she lives in Almada and is enrolled in Maia, with the family unable to secure a transfer. Diário de Notícias focuses on expert opinions regarding classes of 30 students, the solution found by the Ministry and schools to accommodate all pupils. It also reports that Portuguese debt interest rates are at record highs amidst global alert, and that the Supreme Court has again ruled against major BES funds in a 2.2 billion euro dispute against the Bank of Portugal. Jornal de Notícias notes that book sales have reached a multi-year record, with young people among the biggest consumers, according to an APEL study. However, there is room for improvement, as fewer books are being purchased per person and 18% are 'readers who do not buy', largely due to digital piracy. Negócios highlights that profits 20% above average will trigger a 33% tax on the oil sector. Jornal Económico reports that the State lost 118 million euros to illegal gambling in 2025, while Eco notes that an 'historically attractive' dividend was a key factor in the State's re-entry into REN.
The trial regarding the shipwreck off the coast of Troia in April 2024, which claimed the lives of four people, including an 11-year-old boy, is nearing its conclusion.
At issue is the Constitutional Court's decision to deem constitutional the 11 provisions of the bill approved by parliament that amends the granting of asylum and the return of foreign nationals.
It is up to the judge to design the appropriate measures for each situation.
Two other military personnel were also compensated for cases from 2018 (Golegã) and 2009 (Rio Maior).
Climate activist Bianca Castro was given an eighteen-month suspended prison sentence for planting cork oaks at the Alcochete shooting range, the site designated for the new airport.
The National Electoral Commission detected signs of criminal activity in the municipal bulletins from July and August 2025, due to a violation of electoral neutrality. Paulo Silva (CDU) denies any irregularities.
One must be careful as tanks are turning into swimming pools by 'miracle'. While some suggest asylum for colleagues, in Almada water is scarce but the shouting is boiling over.
The situation regarding the current Minister of Internal Administration seems so exotic that it is difficult to write about. The most prudent position is to say nothing, but one element is particularly troubling: the trailer. It is true that when someone is down, many take the opportunity to pile on, especially someone who spent nearly a decade leading the most relevant criminal investigation body. What began as a disguised tank ends up as a large, heavy trailer, seized in a criminal case, yet somehow moving from Seixal to Barcelos. While a trailer itself is of no public importance, the lack of a clear explanation from the authorities is problematic. The world of seized assets remains unfathomable to the average citizen, and the indifference of the courts toward the management of these items only complicates matters. We await answers, as silence is often filled with speculation rather than truth.
“Sincere remorse” mitigated the sentence decreed by the Setúbal Court. The wine producer has already paid the fine to the court.
Público today is running with an exclusive to say that the lawyer acting for the owner of the drugs trailer caught up in the ongoing controversy surrounding Interior Minister Luís The post Owner of ‘drugs trailer’ caught up in Interior Minister controversy seeks to have evidence thrown out appeared first on Portugal Resident.
Bruno Pereira, from the Police Officers' Union, comments on the case of the girl found dead after being left forgotten in a daycare vehicle in Almada. The scenario of negligent homicide by omission is being considered, even in a case of “co-authorship”, given that there are legal obligations regarding the transport of children.
Lawyer Rogério Alves explains that the most likely charge is negligent homicide. Meanwhile, psychologist Miguel Ricou highlights that institutions must have mechanisms to mitigate these errors.
Paulo Saragoça da Matta, lawyer and CNN Portugal commentator, explains the legal provisions regarding death by negligence, following the case of a child who died after being left inside a daycare van in Almada.
The Judicial Police (PJ) has not found any official order authorizing the movement of the trailer involved in the Luís Neves case.
“Beaches belong to the people. They shall not pass”. “Beaches are public. No to kings!”. “Hands off Arrábida”. These were some of the phrases on signs used in the protest in Setúbal this Sunday, July 19. The “Hands off Arrábida” movement took to the streets once again to take a stand against the attempted privatisation of the region's beaches. As DN revealed in Friday's edition, the Ministry of the Environment reiterates that beaches “are part of the public maritime domain”. The Setúbal municipality trusts in the justice system to ensure public interest in the dispute between the owners of Herdade da Comenda and the State. See more photos of the protest: Arrábida. Government reaffirms that beaches are public and Setúbal City Council trusts in the justice system to stop privatisation. The controversy over parasols in front of concessions. What do authorities and concessionaires say?
