BRAZIL LAW AND PRACTICE Contributed by: Alan Campos Elias Thomaz, Juliana Sene Ikeda, Ricardo Barretto Ferreira da Silva and Camila Sabino Del Sasso, Campos Thomaz Advogados
segments. She has co-authored articles in the areas of technology, corporate law and related subjects, and published in Brazil and abroad via publishers in the legal market.
Campos Thomaz Advogados Rua Funchal, 551 – conjunto 51 Vila Olimpia Sao Paulo – SP 04551-060 Brazil Tel: +55 11 3044 4906 Email: contato@camposthomaz.com Web: www.camposthomaz.com/en/home/
1. Legal System and Regulatory Framework 1.1 Legal System
courts – such as the Federal Supreme Court ( Supremo Tribunal Federal STF) and the Superior Court of Jus - tice ( Superior Tribunal de Justiça STJ) – may carry persuasive or binding authority in specific cases. The judiciary in Brazil operates independently of the executive and legislative branches, being divided into federal and state levels, each with its own courts that coexist within specific areas of jurisdiction defined by the Constitution. Cases generally start in first-instance courts and can be appealed to higher courts. At the state level, most civil and criminal cases are handled by state courts, while federal courts address matters involving federal laws or government entities. In addition, there are specialised courts and tribunals, such as small-claims courts ( Juizados Especiais ), the military court system (both state and federal) and the electoral court system. At the top of the judicial hierarchy are the superior courts, which do not review factual issues but focus on questions of law and constitutionality, ensuring consistency in legal interpretation. The STJ serves as the highest authority for non-constitutional federal matters, including civil, administrative and criminal
Brazil operates under a civil law system, influenced by the Roman-Germanic legal tradition, where laws are codified and interpreted by the judiciary. In this sys - tem, statutory law is the principal source of law, which includes the Constitution, laws, decrees, regulations, circulars, ordinances and other normative rules estab - lished by government authorities. At the top of the hierarchy of legal sources is the Brazilian Federal Constitution of 1988. All laws and regulations must comply with its provisions, and any that conflict with the Constitution may be deemed null and void. In addition to statutory law, there are other sources of law in Brazil, which include: (i) analogy, (ii) customary practices, (iii) legal doctrine and (iv) contracts or other instruments arising from private autonomous power. Judicial decisions are not considered formal sources of law, but they serve as support for interpreting the law and for decision-making by the courts. Unlike common law systems, they generally do not estab - lish binding precedents. However, rulings from higher
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