BRAZIL Law and Practice Contributed by: Maria Augusta Rost and Ricardo Barretto, Fenelon Barretto Rost
disputes, particularly in large infrastructure con - cession contracts.
challenge government acts through collective writs of mandamus and public civil actions, even if their own interests are not directly affected, provided they meet the legal requirements for standing.
6. Standing 6.1 Requirements for Administrative Law Challenges As a general rule, claimants must demonstrate that a government decision directly affects their rights. However, under Brazilian law, the judici - ary may, in certain cases, intervene to protect diffuse or collective interests without the formal participation of affected individuals. This applies to public civil actions, which may be brought by institutions such as the public prosecutor’s office, the public defender’s office or the federal government, among others. These actions aim to safeguard public assets, the environment, consumer rights and other collective interests, and may also be used to challenge decisions made by the government. For example, the pub - lic prosecutor’s office may bring a public civil action to contest a contract entered into by the federal government, alleging a breach of envi - ronmental regulations. There are also cases where a citizen may initiate an administrative or judicial proceeding without proving direct personal harm. This includes situ - ations where an individual reports irregularities to the relevant government authority, which will investigate the matter independently, without requiring the claimant’s involvement. Addition - ally, as established by the Constitution, any citi - zen may file a popular action before the judiciary in cases where public assets, the environment or cultural heritage have been harmed. 6.2 Charities and NGOs Charitable institutions and NGOs, as represent - atives of diffuse and collective interests, may
7. Other Parties 7.1 Joinder
The entry and participation of third parties in judicial proceedings are generally regulated by the Civil Procedure Code, which sets out the dif - ferent forms and conditions under which such participation may occur. Beyond these general rules, third-party involvement may be subject to specific procedural regulations. For instance, in writs of mandamus – a legal mechanism used to challenge government acts – the Federal Supreme Court has established firm jurispru - dence against third-party intervention. In administrative and external control proceed - ings, the principles of publicity, the right to a broad defence and the adversarial process allow third parties to submit information and docu - ments that may contribute to the government decision-making process. Additionally, specific public law regulations – such as those govern - ing public procurement procedures – explicitly permit third parties to challenge the legality of certain steps before the relevant decision-mak - ing authority. In the case of public bidding, for example, the law expressly provides that the authority may declare a procedure invalid based on a third-party intervention. 7.2 Roles of Additional Parties The role of third parties in challenges to govern - ment acts varies depending on the type of chal - lenge and the applicable legal framework. When a third party has a direct legal interest in the mat -
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