Efficiency Against the Defence: What Portugal's Law 34/2026 Means for the Right to a Fair Trial
On 27 July 2026, Portugal published a substantial reform of its Code of Criminal Procedure (Law No. 34/2026), which enters into force on 1 September 2026. Presented as a package to combat delay and “procedural obstruction,” it amends around thirty articles of the Code, together with the Penal Code and the Court Costs Regulation. Its stated aim, a faster criminal justice system, is one few would contest.
