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In Brazil, projects are being pushed to reform the Judiciary amid tension at the STF
In the Brazilian Congress, initiatives are advancing to change rules at the Supreme Federal Court and the justice system. According to G1, proposals already submitted are also being merged while the internal crisis at the Court continues.
Amid the crisis that has opened up at Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court, projects are moving through Congress for a reform of the Judiciary. According to G1, there are at least 30 initiatives under way in both chambers, and many of them aim at changes in the STF’s functioning.
Among the main areas drawing the most proposals are fixed terms for justices, changes to the appointment system and new requirements to take a seat on the Court.
According to G1, lawmaker Reginaldo Lopes presented a constitutional amendment proposal that establishes a single term of up to 10 years for justices and counselors of superior courts and audit courts. The plan also sets a minimum age of 50 and a maximum of 70 for future appointments, and provides that the term will end on the 10th anniversary of the assumption of office or when the magistrate turns 75.
The same outlet reported that, over the next four years, Luiz Fux, Cármen Lúcia and Gilmar Mendes will reach the mandatory retirement age. Added to that is the vacancy opened by the retirement of Luís Roberto Barroso, so the next president could appoint up to four justices to the Supreme Court.
G1 also reported that lawmaker Danilo Forte presented another proposal, with an eight-year term for new STF members, a rotating nomination system among the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches, new conduct rules and accountability mechanisms for magistrates, as well as limits on individual decisions. That initiative preserves current posts and provides for gradual implementation as vacancies arise.
Both projects are still in the signature-gathering stage. For a constitutional amendment proposal to be formally introduced, at least 171 signatures from the 513 deputies are needed.
In parallel, the Senate Human Rights Committee approved an indication by Senator Damares Alves for the Constitution and Justice Committee to create a working group aimed at gathering the judicial reform proposals already under discussion. The suggestion calls for consolidating constitutional amendments and bills into a unified text within up to 60 days, although the final decision will rest with the CCJ.
According to G1, the last major reform of Brazil’s Judiciary was in 2004, after nearly 13 years of parliamentary processing. That change gave rise to the National Council of Justice and the National Council of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, in addition to altering various points of the Constitution linked to the judicial system.
The debate is not limited to Congress. According to the same outlet, a group created by the STF itself to discuss a reform received 87 proposals from organizations and entities of civil society. Among the points under debate are terms for justices, limits on monocratic decisions and new oversight and accountability mechanisms. A code of ethics is also under discussion, identified as a priority of the court’s president, Edson Fachin.
The backdrop to these initiatives is the Supreme Court’s internal crisis. According to G1, tensions worsened after André Mendonça lifted the secrecy on Federal Police reports linked to the Banco Master investigation. One of those documents mentioned 52 messages between Daniel Vorcaro and Alexandre de Moraes, as well as in-person meetings and a 130 million reais contract between the bank and the firm of Viviane Barci de Moraes.
The release of that material led to a clash between Moraes and Mendonça. Moraes accused his colleague of selectively releasing the files and omitting documents; Mendonça rejected that accusation and said he had kept under seal data needed to protect ongoing investigations and third parties.
The dispute also reached access to the evidence extracted from Vorcaro’s cellphone. Moraes, Cristiano Zanin and Gilmar Mendes requested full access to the material. After an order from Zanin, the Federal Police confirmed on Monday 14 that it had delivered copies of the digital archive to the three chambers, while the Attorney General’s Office also backed expanding access.
Faced with the conflict, Edson Fachin decided to separate the proceedings. The case involving the messages between Vorcaro and Moraes began to be heard by the full court on Tuesday 15, but the session was interrupted by a request for review from Flávio Dino, who has up to 90 days to return the case file. The accusations by Moraes against Mendonça, meanwhile, were scheduled for September 23.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with assistance from artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not do its own reporting on this event.
