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Having studied at Liceu Camões and at Liceu D. Pedro V, Mr. João Nabais went on to join The University of Lisbon School of Law from which he graduated in 1980, later earning a Master’s Degree in Legal Sciences in 1986 with a Thesis on the Consortium Agreement. Between 1981 and 1991 Mr. João Nabais was an Assistant Professor at The University of Lisbon School of Law, teaching the subjects of Commercial Law, Compared Legal Systems and Economic Law and, from 1988 until 1992, was a Professor of Commercial Law at Lisbon’s Universidade Autónoma.

Since 1983 he is a member of the Portuguese Bar Association and a practicing lawyer under the professional name “João Nabais”, having been Delegate to the Congress of Lawyers of Porto in 1991 and of Funchal in 1994;

In 1986 Mr. João Nabais was a legal adviser and member of the Macao’s Government Delegation in the renegotiation of the Multifiber Agreement (textiles) with the European Community, in Brussels;

Between 1986 and 1991 was a legal adviser to the Portuguese Banks Association (APB), where he also coordinated the task force for Banking Community Law. Mr. Nabais represented this association on several committees of the European Banking Community Federation, with headquarters in Brussels, and was a part of the Portuguese Delegation in the discussion and approval process of the Community Directive on consumer credit. In the context of his professional relation with APB, he has participated in the Committee Meeting on payment systems’ security (VISA, AMERICAN EXPRESS E MASTERCARD) in Copenhagen (1989) and Edinburgh (1990), also joining the task forces responsible for the analysis of the project on the Code of the Securities Market, and legal transposition of the Community Directive on money laundering, as well as, the new Legal Framework on issuing bouncing checks into national law;

In 1990 he integrated, under José António Pinto Ribeiro, alongside Rui Pinto Duarte and José Manuel Sampaio Cabral, the commission that elaborated the project on the Macao’s Commercial Companies Code. In the same year, Mr. João Nabais was a Founding Member of the Justice and Freedoms Forum, a civic association aiming at improving the protection of Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees of Citizens.

Joined the board of DECO (Portuguese Association for Consumers´ Defense) in 1991, of which he is still a member and was its President from 2000 to 2006. He also participated in the creation of the Auto Insurance Information, Mediation and Arbitration Centre (CIMASA);

Resident Commentator on the weekly TV show on legal cases called “Casos de Polícia”, a SIC network show, from 1996 until 1999; Columnist for the “Diário de Notícias” newspaper in 1992 and 1993 and for “Focus” magazine in 1999 and 2000 and Daily contributer for “Diário Digital” (online newspaper) in 2000;

He is the current President of the Arab-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, position for which he was appointed in December of 2018;

Since the beginning of 2020 Mr. João Nabais is a member of the European Economic and Social Council.