Assembleia da República (Assembly of the Republic)
Law
(This is not an official translation of the law)
Third amendment to Law no. 23/96 of 26 July, which ''Establishes mechanisms in the legal order to protect users of essential public services''.
The Assembly of the Republic, pursuant to point c) of article 161 of the Constitution, hereby decrees as follows:
Article 1
Object
The present law establishes an arbitration mechanism necessary to provide users of essential public services with access to justice.
Article 2
Amendment to Law no. 23/96 of 26 July
Article 15 of Law no. 23/96 of 26 July, as amended by Law no. 12/2008 of 26 February of 2 June, shall read as follows:
«Article 15
Resolution of disputes and necessary arbitration
1 – Consumer disputes arising in respect of essential public services shall be subject to required arbitration when, by express choice of users who are natural persons, they will be submitted to examination by the arbitral tribunal of legally authorised consumer conflict arbitration centres.
2 – Where, in the case of dispute resulting from provision of an essential public service, the parties opt to use out-of-court dispute settlement mechanisms, the time limit for the institution of legal or injunction proceedings shall be suspended for so long as such mechanisms are ongoing.»
Article 3
Application in time
The present law will apply to relations which exist upon its entry into force.
Article 4
Entry into force
The present law shall enter into force on the day following its publication.
Approved on 21 January 2011.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic, Jaime Gama.
Promulgated on 22 February 2011.
Let it be published.
The President of the Republic, Aníbal Cavaco Silva.
Counter-signed on 23 February 2011.
The Prime Minister, José Sócrates Carvalho Pinto de Sousa.
