Confidence is on a knife-edge in Portugal. The Government is attempting to halve the country’s huge public deficit, part of the country’s obligations under the European Union (EU) Growth and Stability Pact. The resulting economic uncertainty matches the feeling in the country’s law firms, which are trying to find their feet in a rapidly-changing environment.
“The key issue is how far the Government will go in reforming the State to quash the public deficit,” says Linklaters Lisbon head Jorge Bleck. “It stands at 6.3% and needs to be less than 3% by 2008. This could well lead to very tough measures on public expenditure depressing the economy.”
