Portuguese Law MCP Server

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One endpoint, one OAuth signup, access from any MCP-compatible client.

Connect

Claude Code (one line):

claude mcp add ansvar --transport http https://gateway.ansvar.eu/mcp

Claude Desktop / Cursor — add to claude_desktop_config.json (or mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ansvar": {
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://gateway.ansvar.eu/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Claude.ai — Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector → paste https://gateway.ansvar.eu/mcp

First request opens an OAuth flow at ansvar.eu/gateway. After signup, your client is bound to your account; tier (free / premium / team / company) determines fan-out, quota, and which downstream MCPs are reachable.

Self-host this MCP

You can also clone this repo and build the corpus yourself. The schema, fetcher, and tool implementations all live here. What is not in the repo is the pre-built database — TDM and standards-licensing constraints on the upstream sources mean we host the corpus on Ansvar infrastructure rather than redistribute it as a public artifact.

Build your own: run this repo's ingestion script (entry-point varies per repo — typically scripts/ingest.sh, npm run ingest, or make ingest; check the repo root).

The Diário da República alternative for the AI age.

Query 1,130 Portuguese statutes -- from the Lei n.º 58/2019 (proteção de dados pessoais) and Código Penal to the Código Civil, Código do Trabalho, Decreto-Lei n.º 7/2004 (comércio eletrónico), and more -- directly from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client.

If you're building legal tech, compliance tools, or doing Portuguese legal research, this is your verified reference database.

Built by Ansvar Systems -- Stockholm, Sweden

Why This Exists

Portuguese legal research means navigating dre.pt (Diário da República Eletrónico), tracking Leis, Decretos-Lei, Portarias, and Despachos across multiple ministries, and cross-referencing EU transpositions. Whether you're:

• A lawyer validating citations in a brief or contract
• A compliance officer checking RGPD implementation or Código do Trabalho requirements
• A legal tech developer building tools on Portuguese law
• A researcher tracing EU directives through to Portuguese legislation

...you shouldn't need dozens of browser tabs and manual PDF cross-referencing. Ask Claude. Get the exact provision. With context.

This MCP server makes Portuguese law searchable, cross-referenceable, and AI-readable.

Example Queries

Once connected, just ask naturally -- in Portuguese or English:

• "O que diz a Lei n.º 58/2019 (proteção de dados pessoais) sobre o consentimento?"
• "O Código Penal está em vigor? Quais são as disposições sobre criminalidade informática?"
• "Pesquisa por 'proteção de dados pessoais' na legislação portuguesa"
• "Quais as diretivas europeias que a Lei n.º 58/2019 implementa?"
• "Que diz o Código Civil sobre responsabilidade contratual?"
• "Encontre as disposições do Código do Trabalho sobre teletrabalho"
• "Quais as leis portuguesas que implementam o RGPD?"
• "Which Portuguese laws implement the GDPR?"
• "Compare NIS2 implementation requirements across Portuguese statutes"

What's Included

Verified data only -- every citation is validated against official sources (dre.pt). Zero LLM-generated content.

See It In Action

Why This Works

Verbatim Source Text (No LLM Processing):

• All statute text is ingested from dre.pt (Diário da República Eletrónico) official sources
• Provisions are returned unchanged from SQLite FTS5 database rows
• Zero LLM summarization or paraphrasing -- the database contains regulation text, not AI interpretations

Smart Context Management:

• Search returns ranked provisions with BM25 scoring (safe for context)
• Provision retrieval gives exact text by lei/decreto-lei identifier + artigo/número
• Cross-references help navigate without loading everything at once

Technical Architecture:

dre.pt API → Parse → SQLite → FTS5 snippet() → MCP response
               ↑                      ↑
        Provision parser       Verbatim database query

Traditional Research vs. This MCP

Traditional: Search dre.pt → Download PDF → Ctrl+F → Cross-reference with proposta de lei → Check EUR-Lex → Repeat

This MCP: "Qual o artigo da Lei 58/2019 sobre consentimento e qual a diretiva europeia que lhe dá base?" → Done.

Available Tools (13)

Core Legal Research Tools (8)

EU Law Integration Tools (5)

EU Law Integration

Portugal is an EU member state since 1986. Portuguese law extensively implements EU directives, particularly in data protection, financial services, consumer rights, and environmental law.

Key Portuguese EU Implementations

• GDPR (2016/679) → Lei n.º 58/2019 (proteção de dados pessoais)
• NIS2 Directive (2022/2555) → Lei n.º 65/2021 and subsequent updates
• AI Act (2024/1689) → Portuguese implementation in progress
• eIDAS (910/2014) → Decreto-Lei n.º 290-D/99 and updates
• AML Directive (2015/849) → Lei n.º 83/2017 (combate ao branqueamento)
• Consumer Rights Directive (2011/83) → Decreto-Lei n.º 24/2014

Note on statute types: Portuguese law uses a legislative hierarchy -- Lei (Parliament), Decreto-Lei (Government), Portaria (Ministry), Despacho (Department). The database covers the primary levels (Lei and Decreto-Lei) most relevant for compliance research.

See EU_INTEGRATION_GUIDE.md for detailed documentation.

Data Sources & Freshness

All content is sourced from authoritative Portuguese legal databases:

• dre.pt - Diário da República Eletrónico -- Official Portuguese law database
• EUR-Lex -- Official EU law database (metadata only)

Data Provenance

Automated Freshness Checks (Daily)

A daily GitHub Actions workflow monitors all data sources:

Security

This project uses multiple layers of automated security scanning:

See SECURITY.md for the full policy and vulnerability reporting.

Important Disclaimers

Legal Advice

THIS TOOL IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE

Statute text is sourced from official dre.pt publications. However:

• This is a research tool, not a substitute for professional legal counsel
• Court case coverage is limited -- do not rely solely on this for case law research
• Verify critical citations against primary sources (dre.pt) for court filings
• EU cross-references are extracted from Portuguese statute text, not EUR-Lex full text
• Portarias and Despachos (ministerial orders) are only partially covered -- check relevant ministry websites for complete guidance

Before using professionally, read: DISCLAIMER.md | PRIVACY.md

Client Confidentiality

Queries go through the Claude API. For privileged or confidential matters, use on-premise deployment. See PRIVACY.md for Ordem dos Advogados compliance guidance.

Documentation

• EU Integration Guide -- Detailed EU cross-reference documentation
• EU Usage Examples -- Practical EU lookup examples
• Security Policy -- Vulnerability reporting and scanning details
• Disclaimer -- Legal disclaimers and professional use notices
• Privacy -- Client confidentiality and data handling

Development

Setup

git clone https://github.com/Ansvar-Systems/portuguese-law-mcp
cd portuguese-law-mcp
npm install
npm run build
npm test

Running Locally

npm run dev                                       # Start MCP server
npx @anthropic/mcp-inspector node dist/index.js   # Test with MCP Inspector

Data Management

npm run ingest                     # Ingest statutes from dre.pt
npm run build:db                   # Rebuild SQLite database
npm run drift:detect               # Run drift detection
npm run check-updates              # Check for amendments and new statutes
npm run census                     # Generate coverage census report

Performance

• Search Speed: <100ms for most FTS5 queries
• Database Size: ~76 MB (efficient, portable)
• Reliability: 100% ingestion success rate

More Ansvar MCPs

Full fleet at ansvar.eu/gateway.

Contributing

Contributions welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Priority areas:

• Court case law expansion (Supremo Tribunal de Justiça, Tribunal Constitucional)
• EU regulation cross-reference expansion
• Portaria and Despacho coverage
• Historical statute versions and amendment tracking

Roadmap

• Core statute database with FTS5 search

• Full corpus ingestion (1,130 statutes, 81,012 provisions)

• EU law integration tools

• Vercel Streamable HTTP deployment

• Daily freshness checks

• Court case law expansion (STJ, Tribunal Constitucional)

• Historical statute versions (amendment tracking)

• Portaria and Despacho coverage

• English translations for key statutes

Citation

If you use this MCP server in academic research:

@software{portuguese_law_mcp_2026,
  author = {Ansvar Systems AB},
  title = {Portuguese Law MCP Server: Production-Grade Legal Research Tool},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://github.com/Ansvar-Systems/portuguese-law-mcp},
  note = {1,130 Portuguese statutes with 81,012 provisions and EU law cross-references}
}

License

Apache License 2.0. See LICENSE for details.

Data Licenses

Ansvar attribution code: Portuguese-CDADC-Art-7-and-8. Basis: cross-reference between CDADC (Codigo do Direito de Autor e dos Direitos Conexos) Art. 8 and Art. 3(1)(c).

• Statutes & Legislation: Imprensa Nacional - Casa da Moeda via Diario da Republica (dre.pt / diariodarepublica.pt). Reused under CDADC Art. 8 + Art. 3(1)(c).
• EU Metadata: EUR-Lex (EU public-domain notice).

Coverage scope (cross-reference construction)

Portugal's statutory-PD basis is a cross-reference — it requires two articles read together:

• Art. 8 (CDADC): carves official documents from copyright protection.
• Art. 3(1)(c) (CDADC): defines what counts as an "official document" for the carve-out — legislative acts, administrative regulations, court decisions, and other official texts.

Why this is NOT Art. 7 alone: Art. 7 covers only news reports (notícias do dia), petitions (petições), and discourses (discursos). It does NOT cover statutes. Treating Art. 7 as the statutory-PD basis is a common misreading. The correct construction is Art. 8 + Art. 3(1)(c).

See docs/audits/2026-05-17-eu-copyright-statutory-works-batch-2-HU-LU-PT-RO-GR.md in the Ansvar architecture-documentation repo for the verbatim Art. 8 and Art. 3(1)(c) text and the cross-reference analysis.

About Ansvar Systems

We build AI-accelerated compliance and legal research tools for the European market. This MCP server started as our internal reference tool for Portuguese law -- turns out everyone building compliance tools for the Iberian and Lusophone market has the same research frustrations.

So we're open-sourcing it. Navigating 1,130 diplomas in the Diário da República shouldn't require a law degree.

ansvar.eu -- Stockholm, Sweden