BRAZIL Law and Practice Contributed by: João Areosa, Guilherme Peres de Oliveira and Raphael Rangel, Areosa Advogados
unauthorised data processing and sharing without consent; lack of transparency in data collection prac- tices; inadequate security measures to protect per- sonal data; and cross-border data transfers without adequate safeguards. Major technology, telecommunications, financial ser- vices and e-commerce companies face increasing exposure. The ANPD’s administrative enforcement co-ordinates with judicial collective actions, creating comprehensive enforcement. Recent cases include collective actions against social media platforms for privacy violations, financial insti- tutions for data breaches, healthcare providers for unauthorised data sharing, and retailers for inade- quate cybersecurity causing customer data exposure. Platform Economy and Gig Economy Collective actions increasingly target digital platforms regarding consumer protection violations on market- places and platforms; labour rights of platform workers (classification as employees vs independent contrac- tors, benefits, working conditions); liability for goods and services sold through platforms; algorithmic dis- crimination and bias in platform operations; and con- tent moderation, misinformation and user rights. Courts are developing frameworks to address these novel issues within existing collective action struc- tures, often struggling with how traditional concepts Private enforcement of competition law is expanding substantially, with follow-on actions after major CADE (Brazilian antitrust authority) cartel decisions (banking cartel, construction cartels, healthcare cartels, steel and cement cartels); standalone actions alleging anti- competitive conduct without prior administrative find- ings; abuse of dominance claims against dominant players (particularly technology giants); anti-compet- itive merger effects; and price fixing in essential goods and services. These cases involve complex economic analysis, expert evidence and substantial potential damages. apply to platform business models. Competition Law Collective Actions
Law firms are developing specialised competition liti- gation practices. Environmental and Climate Litigation Brazil is experiencing increased environmental collec- tive actions addressing deforestation and illegal min- ing, particularly in the Amazon; industrial pollution of air, water and soil; climate change impacts and green- house gas emissions; failure to meet environmental targets and commitments; environmental licensing violations; and indigenous peoples’ environmental and territorial rights. Public Prosecutors, environmental NGOs and indig- enous organisations bring high-profile cases against both private companies and government entities for environmental violations. Notable cases include actions against mining compa- nies for dam failures, oil companies for spills, agribusi- ness companies for deforestation, and government entities for failure to enforce environmental laws. ESG and Corporate Accountability Growing attention to environmental, social and govern- ance (ESG) factors drives collective actions regarding disclosure obligations to investors about ESG perfor- mance; environmental commitments vs actual perfor- mance (greenwashing); social responsibility failures (labour conditions, human rights); governance failures, corruption and fraud; supply chain violations; and mis- leading ESG claims in securities offerings. Investors and stakeholders increasingly use collec- tive litigation to enforce ESG commitments and hold companies accountable for ESG failures. Consumer Financial Services Significant collective litigation in financial services involves abusive interest rates and banking fees; misleading product marketing to unsophisticated consumers; unauthorised charges and services; credit card and loan disputes; insurance claim denials and bad faith; fintech compliance with consumer protec- tion laws; and cryptocurrency and digital asset fraud.
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