Reflexions about the principle of property’s social function

Abstract

This article revisits the principle of property’s social function having in mind the recent reform of forestries legislation. The problem of abandoned land, which encourages the propagation of fires, and the eventual imposition of duties and taxes on landowners, has not been solved but has revived the debate about the limits of (rustic) property rights in confronting social interests as security, environmental protection and the defense of third party rights. Regarding the report of the Independent Technical Commission (point 10) emphasizing the need for a greater control of the fulfillment of the duties of cleaning and care by the rural proprietors, we go through Portuguese Constitutional Law and constitutional jurisprudence, as well as through the Brazilian Constitution – the one that more developed the principle - in order to analyze the value of some solutions that may be implemented in the future.