We begin our collection of 10 partners 10 stories, with Marco Aurélio Constantino, precisely because he was the last to join our law firm:
Your invitation to become a partner in 2019 was the recognition of your contribution to the firm in terms of your background, technical quality, dedication and alignment with BAS’s values and mission. Would you like to comment?
BAS has a very special matrix. We are talking about a project of a law firm conceived by a group of people who, at the time, having already a wide experience in the practice of law, solid personal and professional ties, a sense of enormous responsibility, differentiated legal knowledge, and fearlessly embracing the risks of setting up a new law firm, wanted to offer their clients a legal service of excellence. In this context, the invitation to join BAS as a partner, as it was the invitation to join the project in 2010, even before BAS was established, was flattering and a privilege. This feeling is also based on an environment and a culture of proximity promoted by the founding partners – this is their way of being – towards the rest of the staff, which were a source of motivation, first as a trainee lawyer and after as an associate lawyer, to participate in the construction of this project. I think my alignment with the values and mission of BAS was what led to my invitation by the founding partners in 2019. As for the contribution that I eventually gave and the other qualities that you mentioned, I do not see them as being significant to prompt the invitation, since my dedication to the project and involvement in its growth and consolidation continue to be viewed by me as constant challenges for the future. And I like a challenge!
You have been present since the establishment of the law firm in 2010. What was the most important moment for you?
As I mentioned in my previous answer, the most remarkable moment I had in the firm was even before BAS was established as a law firm. The invitation to be part of the project and the confidence that the founding partners put in me, still as a trainee lawyer, to have the opportunity to participate in it was a very gratifying moment and an enormous flattery.
Do you have any curious stories from your experience as a lawyer that you can share?
Throughout my career as a lawyer there have been several peculiar situations that I have experienced. I recall with particular satisfaction a situation where, on my way to a trial hearing, my train abruptly stopped in order to assist a pedestrian and the train supervisor asked for help and if there was a health professional on the train. Instinctively, being a trained nurse, I got up and went to rescue the person outside the train, leaving aside the robe and the laptop. When I got back to the train, the emergency services had already arrived on the scene, and a colleague came to me with my robe and laptop and said: “I never imagined it would be so safe with the colleague” … (laughs)
Given the pandemic situation we are experiencing, how has BAS been dealing with it?
It is known that BAS, among its several practices areas, has a very strong work in the Health sector. This experience, complemented with the differentiated knowledge of our team in the practice area of Health and in the several practice areas of Law that are transversal to this sector, gives BAS a sense of responsibility in how it answers to the challenges that the pandemic has placed to our Clients, directed to the defence of their interests and with the concern of providing the legal service that better suits their needs in such a troubled and uncertain period.
The pandemic also creates many challenges to issues related to Labour Law, another strong area of BAS, which requires that we pay close attention to the support given to our Clients.
Internally, and also with the social responsibility that this period requires from BAS, active measures of protection of its team, their families and other people like their clients and other stakeholders, were taken, as soon as the circumstances turned out to be an exceptional situation, namely with the provision of at distance legal services and with the preference of resorting to at a distance means of communication, reserving our physical presence only for those cases where it is strictly and effectively necessary, following the national and international recommendations in the fight against Covid-19.
We have been monitoring the evolution of the pandemic and the emergency situation on a regular basis, in order to take the most appropriate measures, also because of the risks identified. On the other hand, in view of the exceptional situation we are going through, we have reinforced our response to the new challenges our clients are facing.
You have a vast experience in the practice area of Health Law and Life Sciences, namely in medical liability, among others. How do you see the current situation and the risk and challenge that health professionals are facing?
The current situation, from the point of view of Health and Life Sciences Law and, in particular, in the field of medical liability, will certainly bring new problems and situations that require a specialized approach. I am convinced that the respective resolution will show that there is a need to rethink the civil liability regime in the field of health care, as has been advocated by several lawyers at BAS.
The protection of individuals but also of health care professionals and the promotion of their rights and the effectiveness of their exercise already called for a review of the system of civil liability in relation to the provision of health care; the law must continue to offer the most appropriate regulation for the problems arising in the practice of healthcare professions and to guarantee to all those involved the confidence and stability necessary for a fair and equitable resolution of any disputes which may arise.
Is it a great responsibility to combine your technical knowledge as a healthcare and legal professional? And has it been more demanding for you to answer clients’ questions and concerns in this area of Health Law?
The approach to the new problems of our Clients, which we have seen emerging in recent years due to the evolution in the area of Health and also of Information Technology in the Health sector, requires the mobilization of knowledge not only in the legal area, but also in other areas of knowledge. In cases where we share two areas of knowledge and two professional areas, as is my case, with, on the one hand, Law and, on the other, Nursing, there is a greater responsibility for providing legal services.
While it is true that the conciliation of these two knowledges, in most situations, facilitates the understanding of the issues presented by our clients, the respective approach and its resolution require greater sensitivity, a more comprehensive view and a focus on the client’s needs that goes beyond the legal resolution of the problem itself.
The development of relationships of trust with clients due to my knowledge as a health professional and as a lawyer, is truly rewarding, especially if the solution to their problem emerges from the combination of both my skills.
Post-graduation short course in “O Regime do Maior acompanhado: a revisão do Código Civil e o sistema de salvaguarda de interesses da pessoa maior”, Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, in 2019
Post-graduation course in Informed Consent, Faculty of Law, University of Coimbra, in 2011
Post-graduation short course in Clinical and Secret Procedure from Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, in 2009.
Post-graduation short course in Medical Responsibility from Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, in 2008.
Graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon, in 2008.
Graduated in nursing from the Santarém School of Nursing, in 2001.
