The Institute of Company Lawyers (Instituto dos Advogados de Empresa, I.A.E.), founded in 2002, is a functional subdivision of the Portuguese Bar Association (Ordem dos Advogados) with the purpose of providing specialized cooperation with the President and the General Counsels of the Portuguese Bar Association on all matters related to the representation, qualification and specific treatment of lawyers working in an employment relationship, public or private, on an exclusive or non-exclusive basis.

“The I.A.E. was specifically created in order to be aware of the multiple difficulties that company lawyers may encounter, while they are still bound by the ethical obligations established by the Bar Association´s Statutes”- explains the current President Dr. Marco Vieira Nunes – “They must abide the values of the legal profession such as freedom and independence”.

I.A.E. includes all company lawyers regularly enrolled in the Portuguese Bar Association, so they can participate in the various activities developed by the Institute.
In addition to the many  Bar’s events, the I.A.E. annually fosters a large number of different activities such  as organizing  conferences and seminars specifically fitting company lawyers’ needs, promoting an Annual Encounter on a national scale and holding surveys among company lawyers.
In complete harmony with ECLA’s mission, Dr. Marco Vieira Nunes can say with pleasure: “ The board members and I follow with great interest the activities developed by ECLA. In a global world and in the European Union legal context I strongly believe that the collaboration, the exchange of information and the sharing of experience and expertise  among ECLA’s members is fundamental,  as well as identifying common challenges for company lawyers”.