JUS | Discussion Group on Comparative Constitutional Law and Theory

Professor Dr. Tiago Fidalgo de Freitas, University of Lisbon (Portugal)

Lecture: The Portuguese model of administrative transparency at the crossroads

Date: 22.05.2026, 9:00 a.m.
Venue: Room L621, 6^th floor | Faculty of Law | Sigmund Freud University | Lassallestraße 3, 1020 Vienna

The Portuguese Constitution entrenches the right of access to administrative information as a constitutional fundamental right. To implement this right, the Portuguese Law on Access to Administrative Documents was first approved in 1993 and the Commission on Access to Administrative Documents was created in 1994, with its first opinion having been delivered the following year. After more than three decades of existence, with several thousands of opinions delivered, the model is tested and seems to have passed the test of effectiveness. Indeed, more than 86% of the opinions are followed by the public administration, despite its non-binding effect.

However, information commissioners (and other independent oversight bodies) and transparency regimes currently face significant challenges and the Portuguese ones are no exception. On the political end of the spectrum, the rise of populism and the spread of disinformation, especially through social networks, undermine the ability of transparency to function as an instrument of democratic accountability. Similarly, the advent of artificial intelligence also raises questions about the democratic control of administrative authorities. Finally, from the legal side, the extensive interpretations made of data protection regimes have, the heavy sanctions foreseen therein and the extensive powers given to data protection supervisory have created uncertainty in public bodies, prompting approaches that are either conservative or inappropriately restrictive regarding access to information. I will tackle these challenges and identify alternative paths to overcome them.

Please register until 21.05.2026: konrad.lachmayer@jus.sfu.ac.at

Biography

Tiago Fidalgo de Freitas is a Guest Lecturer at the University of Lisbon School of Law and Researcher and Executive Coordinator of the Lisbon Public Law Research Centre. He also serves as Information Commissioner at the Portuguese Information Commission on Access to Administrative Documents, elected by the Portuguese Parliament, and Senior Advisor at the Legal Service of the Portuguese Government. He also provides legal advice to Portuguese, foreign and international authorities.
Tiago has published and participated in scholarly conferences and workshops in the fields of Constitutional Law and Constitutional Justice, Fundamental Rights, and Public International Law, both nationally and internationally. He has also focused part of his research in the Law and Practice of Transparency and Integrity.

Sigmund Freud Private University Vienna
Faculty of Law

Address Lassallestrasse 3, 6th floor, 1020 Vienna
Phone 0043 1 4700 104 12
E-mail jus@sfu.ac.at
Web: https://jus.sfu.ac.at

• https://www.lachmayer.eu/discussion-group-on-comparative-constitutional-law-and-theory/