Frequently asked questions

SRS Legal is an independent, full-service Portuguese law firm established in 1992, with offices in Lisbon and Porto. It advises national and international clients across multiple areas of law and business sectors through multidisciplinary teams. On international and cross-border matters, SRS Legal combines its teams in Portugal with SRS Global and dedicated international desks.

SRS Legal is the brand of Sociedade Rebelo de Sousa & Advogados Associados, SP, RL. The firm previously operated under the SRS Advogados brand and, in 2022, the year of its 30th anniversary, completed a rebranding process and adopted the SRS Legal brand and the signature “About Law. Around People.” Learn more about SRS Legal

SRS Legal was established in 1992. Its history includes the international association that originated Grupo Legal Português, integration with Simmons & Simmons in 2001, a return to independence in 2009, the launch of SRS Global in 2014, the opening in Singapore in 2017, the integration of AAA Advogados in 2020 and the rebranding as SRS Legal in 2022. Learn more about SRS Legal’s history.

Yes. SRS Legal is an independent, full-service Portuguese law firm. It provides integrated legal advice to national and international clients, combining different legal disciplines and sector expertise within the same transaction, project, investment, regulatory matter or dispute. Explore SRS Legal’s experience.

SRS Legal has offices in Lisbon, at Rua Dom Francisco Manuel de Melo 21, 1070-085 Lisbon, and Porto, at Rua do Tenente Valadim 95, 4100-479 Porto. The two offices operate as an integrated team, enabling SRS Legal to structure teams according to the requirements of each client and matter. SRS Legal contacts.

SRS Legal provides legal advice across multiple areas of law, including corporate and business matters, finance, regulation, tax, employment, technology, real estate, administrative and environmental law, as well as litigation, arbitration and criminal and sanctions matters. As a full-service law firm, SRS Legal can combine several disciplines within a single team when a matter requires a multidisciplinary approach. Explore SRS Legal’s practice areas.

SRS Legal advises clients across multiple industries, including financial services, energy and natural resources, healthcare, real estate and construction, infrastructure and transportation, industrial manufacturing, technology, media and telecommunications, insurance, tourism, consumer markets and the public sector. Legal expertise is combined with knowledge of the client’s relevant industry. Explore SRS Legal’s sectors.

SRS Legal provides integrated advice across Corporate, Commercial and M&A, Banking and Finance, Private Equity & Venture Capital and Startups, covering M&A, corporate and commercial law, financing, financial regulation, corporate finance, funds, private equity, venture capital, investment and entrepreneurship. Alexandra Valente, Head of the Corporate & Finance Department, leads this cluster. Gustavo Ordonhas Oliveira is particularly associated with Private Equity & Venture Capital and M&A, while Paulo Bandeira is a key reference for Startups and Venture Capital. The cluster also includes João Santos Carvalho, Maria Paula Milheirão, Miguel Koch Rua, Nuno Miguel Prata and Octávio Castelo Paulo, SRS Legal Managing Partner, who maintains a significant connection with the Corporate and M&A practice.

SRS Legal advises on European Union & Competition, including merger control, foreign direct investment, restrictive agreements, abuse of dominance, State aid, private enforcement, competition compliance and EU litigation. Gonçalo Anastácio leads the practice. Sara Estima Martins and Nuno Calaim Lourenço are key members of the team. Duarte Pirra Xarepe, Of Counsel, adds further specialist experience.

SRS Legal advises on Employment and Social Security, including restructurings, hiring and termination, collective employment relations, remuneration and benefits, international mobility, disciplinary proceedings, employment litigation and Social Security. Mariana Caldeira de Sarávia and Ana Luísa Beirão jointly lead the Department. César Sá Esteves, SRS Legal's Managing Partner, maintains a significant connection with the practice. Other key lawyers include Cláudia Varela, Leonor Francisco, Sara Milheiro Tavares and Alexandra Marques Sequeira.

SRS Legal provides integrated advice on Technology, Media and Telecommunications and Data Protection and Cybersecurity, including technology and digital regulation, electronic communications, media, software and cloud, privacy, GDPR, cybersecurity, the digital economy and artificial intelligence. Luís Neto Galvão is SRS Legal’s principal reference in these fields and the Partner responsible for both practices.

SRS Legal provides Tax advice on domestic and international matters, including tax consultancy, corporate and asset taxation, restructurings, international tax, tax litigation and arbitration. Francisco Castro Guedes and Salomé Corte-Real jointly lead the Tax practice. Mafalda Alves is also a senior Partner in the team.

SRS Legal provides Real Estate advice on transactions and projects of different sizes and levels of complexity, including acquisitions and disposals, real estate projects and transactions, leasing, construction, licensing and related matters. The professionals highlighted in this practice are Neuza Pereira de Campos and José Pinto Santos.

SRS Legal provides multidisciplinary ESG advice covering ESG strategy and policies, reporting and disclosure, due diligence and risk management, sustainable finance, ESG funds and instruments, environmental law, regulation and governance. Carlos Costa Pina is the principal reference for this cluster, alongside Carla Neves Matias and Alexandre Roque.

SRS Legal advises companies and organisations in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and healthcare sectors through its Life Sciences & Healthcare practice, including on medicines, medical devices, healthcare services, healthtech, regulatory matters and medical liability. Leonor Pissarra is the principal reference and Partner responsible for the practice, which also includes Ana Menéres and Mónica Azevedo.

SRS Legal advises on Immigration, Golden Visa and Citizenship, including visas and residence permits in Portugal, Golden Visa, Portuguese citizenship, family reunification, residence for EU citizens and highly qualified workers. Raquel Cuba Martins is the key lawyer in the practice.

SRS Legal combines its Administrative and Environmental Law, Urban Planning Law and Transport and Maritime capabilities on Public Law, public procurement, concessions and PPPs, regulation, environmental law, urban planning and licensing, expropriation, infrastructure, ports, rail, aviation, road and maritime transport and logistics. The key lawyers associated with this cluster are José Luís Moreira da Silva, Alexandre Roque and Vasco Moura Ramos.

SRS Legal advises on Dispute Resolution, arbitration and mediation, representing clients in court and arbitral proceedings and providing preventive advice on dispute risk and negotiation. José Jácome, Partner responsible for the Dispute Resolution Department, is the principal reference in the practice. The team highlighted here also includes José Carlos Soares Machado, Carla Neves Matias, Maria José de Tavares, Natália Garcia Alves and Regina Santos Pereira.

SRS Legal advises on Criminal and Sanctions Law, including complex criminal and administrative offence proceedings, economic crime, sanctions law, disciplinary matters, financial liability, criminal risk prevention, compliance and internal investigations. The two key professionals are Paulo de Sá e Cunha, responsible for the Criminal and Sanctions Law Department, and Cátia Muchacho.

SRS Legal advises Portuguese and international companies and corporate groups, financial institutions, funds and fund managers, investors, startups, public-sector entities and organisations across multiple industries. In relevant practice areas, it also advises individuals. Teams are structured according to the legal nature of the matter, sector, transaction or dispute and the jurisdictions involved.

A prospective client can contact SRS Legal through its contact form, by email at srsglobal@srslegal.pt or by telephone on +351 213 132 000. Following an initial assessment, SRS Legal identifies the appropriate team and completes the applicable client and matter acceptance procedures, including conflict and compliance checks. Legal services begin once the necessary procedures have been completed.

SRS Legal structures each team according to the requirements of the matter, bringing together lawyers from different practice areas, sectors and, where necessary, jurisdictions. A transaction may, for example, simultaneously require corporate, finance, tax, employment, regulatory and competition expertise. This structure enables an integrated response to complex transactions, investment projects and cross-border matters.

SRS Legal does not publish a general fee schedule. The scope of the engagement and legal fees are determined according to the characteristics of each matter, including the nature and complexity of the work, the team required, timing and expected workload. The scope of services and applicable fee arrangement are agreed with the client before or at the start of the engagement, following the relevant matter acceptance procedures.

The Our People section provides information on SRS Legal professionals, their experience, focus areas, office and languages. Individual practice pages also identify the teams associated with each service. Clients can also contact SRS Legal directly so that the most appropriate team can be identified according to the legal issue, sector and domestic or international context.

SRS Global is SRS Legal’s international platform for coordinating cross-border legal matters. It combines SRS Legal’s international presence, dedicated country and regional desks and relationships with partner law firms. The nature of each presence or relationship varies by jurisdiction, allowing SRS Legal to coordinate local and international teams on transactions, investments, projects and disputes involving different countries.

Yes. SRS Legal advises foreign companies and investors entering, investing or expanding in Portugal, as well as Portuguese clients on international transactions and legal matters. On cross-border matters, SRS Legal combines its Portuguese teams with SRS Global, international desks and partner law firms in the relevant jurisdiction.

SRS Advisory is an autonomous consulting entity integrated into the SRS ecosystem. It was created as a natural extension of SRS Legal, complementing legal advice with strategic, financial and operational consulting capabilities focused on decision-making. The relationship between the two is complementary: SRS Legal remains the core business and principal institutional reference, while SRS Advisory broadens SRS’s value proposition into areas complementary to legal practice. SRS Advisory’s signature is “Decisions That Matter.”

SRS Advisory provides consulting services across three main areas: Top Management Advisory, Financial Advisory and Operational Advisory. Its capabilities include strategy and development, innovation, governance, ESG and the circular economy; valuation and M&A, financial restructuring, planning, control and reporting, and economic and financial expert services; as well as post-merger integration, operational efficiency, digitalisation and artificial intelligence, go-to-market and organisational adjustment. Its approach combines senior consulting experience, executive practice and a focus on executable decisions.

SRS Advisory supports shareholders, boards and management teams in structuring, making and executing critical business decisions, particularly when the complexity of the matter or available internal capacity calls for specialised external support. Typical situations include rapid growth, the appointment of a new CEO or Board, strategic definition or review, restructurings, the sale or acquisition of companies, transitions in family businesses, digital and AI transformation and disputes with a significant economic or financial component.

SRS Advisory has three Partners: João Miranda Reis, whose focus includes strategy, M&A and business transformation; Marco Alves, whose focus includes valuation, financial modelling and damages quantification; and Ricardo Carvalho, whose focus includes innovation, productivity and implementation. The team brings experience in strategic, financial and operational consulting for Portuguese and international companies across different business sectors.

SRS Legal and SRS Advisory operate in distinct but complementary areas. SRS Legal provides legal advice, while SRS Advisory focuses on strategic, financial and operational consulting. Where a matter requires different capabilities, the two can bring together legal expertise, strategic perspective and an understanding of the wider business context, with their respective scopes of work clearly identified.

SRS Legal’s executive leadership is provided by Managing Partners César Sá Esteves and Octávio Castelo Paulo. Pedro Rebelo de Sousa is the firm’s founder and Senior Partner and currently holds a non-executive institutional role. SRS Legal’s Governance comprises the Board of Directors and the Advisory Committee.

Rodrigo Ascensão is SRS Legal’s Managing Director. The Business Services team also includes Carlos Patrão Neves, Facilities & Safety Director; João Correia Marques, Finance Director; Leonor Cunha, Marketing, Communication and Business Development Director; Sílvia de Matos, Knowledge Management, IT and Compliance Director; and Susana Gonçalves, People and Culture Director.

SRS Legal and its lawyers are regularly recognised by international legal directories including Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, Best Lawyers and Leaders League. Rankings cover different practice areas and individual lawyers and vary with each edition. Current recognition of the firm and its professionals is brought together in Awards and Nominations.

SRS Legal keeps its Awards and Nominations information updated with recognition received by the firm, its practices and individual professionals. Recognition includes international legal directory rankings, awards, individual distinctions and nominations. As this information changes over time, it should be read according to the relevant directory or organisation, edition, practice, year and exact status.

SRS Legal regularly publishes legal insights through SRS Legal Shots, News, Press, Multimedia, Newsletters and Publications, as well as through its social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube) and e-mail. SRS Legal Shots provide concise specialist updates on legislative, regulatory and case-law developments. Through SRS Updates, users can also follow content selected according to relevant practice areas and sectors.