A NEW APPROACH TO “THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION ACT”- AN ENCOURAGEMENT TO RE-ESTABLISH THE “CASAL DE FAMÍLIA” IN PORTUGUESE LAW

Abstract

Housing is a fundamental right enshrined in the Constitution. As a structural element of family organisation, the family residence becomes a necessary instrument for achieving the minimum values ​​of human dignity in its family dimension. The Portuguese legal system that constitutionally enshrines the inviolability of the human person's dignity, the protection of the family and the right to housing, attributes a vulnerability to the family residence, allowing it to be seized, with very few exceptions. The "casal de família" institute, which finds its place in the North American Homestead, can recommend a feasible and possible solution to protect the family residence. Under Portuguese law, this institute was in force between 1920 and 1977, assuming the terminology of "casal de família". We will analyse the legal regime of Homestead and the modus operandi of the "casal de família" in Portugal. We wonder whether the Portuguese legal system should again consider the existence of "family property" or "family couple". We believe that such a concept would encourage the family, strengthen its values, strengthen its ties, and solve a pressing social problem, not resolved by the Portuguese law n ° 13/2016, of May 23.