A (in)existência e a (in)adequação da função preventivo-punitiva da responsabilidade civil

: uma análise do ordenamento jurídico português

Abstract

The present research seeks to analyze the institute of the civil liability in the Portuguese Law, in order to verify if, nowadays, it plays, or should play, a punitive function beyond its primordial reparatory function. To this purpose, lucrative illicit acts and the need of removal of illegal benefits are discussed as issues that lead the doctrine to reflect on the necessity and usefulness of the punitive approach to civil liability. For the construction of reasoning, essential themes are debated, such as: the theory of difference, the (ir) relevance of virtual cause, the compensation of non-patrimonial damages and the unjustified enrichment. There is also an analysis of a comparative law institute, punitive damages, which, in other countries, lends itself to exercise a preventive-punitive function in the field of Civil Law, and about the main criticisms of the compatibility of this tool with the Portuguese law. Finally, this research examines some Civil and other national Code’s rules, which use other criteria rather than the classic, that is, to quantify the amount of compensation according to the extent of the damage and, by that, open’s space to the interpretation about the existence of a preventive-punitive character of civil liability in the Portuguese Legal System.

Date of Award	13 Jul 2021
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Maria de Fátima Ribeiro (Supervisor)