Ten Years of the European Succession Regulation – The Approach of the Portuguese Courts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60131/jlaw.2.2026.11916Keywords:
applicable law; courts; European Succession Regulation; harmonization; jurisdiction; jurisprudence; Portugal.Abstract
As the European Succession Regulation celebrates its tenth anniversary after its entry into force, it seems to be advisable to study and analyse the main rulings issued by the courts that apply its provisions on a day-to-day basis. This paper aims to identify, disclose and appreciate the main decisions issued by the Portuguese Courts of Appeal and by the Portuguese Supreme Court within the key topics of the Regulation itself, such as the scope of its application, the concept of succession, the use of the habitual residence connecting factor for purposes of determining the jurisdiction and the applicable law to a specific succession, and some international public policy (ordre public) considerations. The paper also notes some of the main subject matters that surprisingly have not yet been addressed by the Portuguese Courts of Appeal nor by the Portuguese Supreme Court, such as the provisions of the Regulation related with the agreements as to succession, the possibility to choose the applicable law to the succession of the deceased, renvoi considerations, among others.
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