A responsabilidade patrimonial dos cônjuges e a penhora de bens comuns do casal

Abstract

In the last fifty years, a new culture of marriage and family has taken root, resulting from the overvaluation of the ideals of equality, independence and autonomy between spouses (art. 67.º, n.º 1 of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic). The couple and the family have become detached from the framework of traditional values dictated by Law and have started to be guided by their own pretensions, towards the creation of internally referential systems and, also, towards the progressive abandonment of the conjugal duties dictated by Law. In this sense, a revision of the substantive and procedural legislation regarding the regime of liability for conjugal debts (articles 1690.º to 1697.º and art. 740.º and following of the CPC) is imperative, namely, as it seems to us the most flagrant cases, regarding the attachment of wages and of the family home, in enforcement proceedings brought against only one of the spouses for debts of which he/she is exclusively responsible. As it stands,it not only seems inappropriate to the contemporary family reality, but it may not adequately protect the position of the spouse of the debtor. At the same time, we believe that the separate property regime is the one that best adapts to the patrimonial autonomy and independence evident in marital relations in the current context.

Date of Award	19 Jul 2023
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Ana Filipa Morais Antunes (Supervisor)