The national council of Brazil's bar association, the OAB, asked the president of the country's highest court, the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Justice Edson Fachin, on Wednesday (9) to keep Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet from acting personally in the case that examines a Federal Police report logging contacts between Justice Alexandre de Moraes and Banco Master banker Daniel Vorcaro. The request was approved in an emergency meeting of the OAB national body with the presidents of its 27 state chapters and filed under case PET 16.662/DF, according to Metrópoles.
Why the bar wants Gonet off the case
The OAB argues that Gonet now holds an unusual position. His office, the Prosecutor-General's Office (PGR), has already taken a stance in the case, arguing that the order which produced the Federal Police report, and any material derived from it, should be voided, CNN Brasil reported. At the same time, Fachin summoned Gonet to answer questions in the proceeding the court's presidency opened to centralize review of the crisis between the justices and the Federal Police.
In the association's view, holding both roles at once means Gonet should step aside personally. Federal prosecutors would stay in the case through the prosecutor-general's legal substitute. The OAB itself stressed that the request draws no conclusion about Gonet's conduct. The filing describes the measure as "strictly procedural and preventive". In a statement, the council said the request "does not intend to interfere with the investigation, replace the competent authorities or give unrestricted publicity to information protected by law".
Other requests and what comes next
The OAB also asked for access to the reports, evidence, filings and other documents tied to the crisis, including sealed material, within the limits set by the court. It requested that investigations be opened into "possible unlawful acts related to the facts, without distinction based on the office or function of the authorities eventually involved". Any inquiry, the entity argues, must be individualized and preserve due process, the right to a full defense and the presumption of innocence. For the association, it is "through regular investigation, and not through presumptions or anticipated conclusions" that facts of such institutional relevance must be clarified.
The request adds a chapter to the friction between the bar association and the Supreme Court. In the same meeting, the OAB decided to create a commission of national board members and chapter presidents to review the documents and issue an opinion on the conduct of the justices involved. An impeachment petition against Moraes is among the options the commission may weigh, CNN Brasil reported. Removing a sitting justice requires a trial in the Senate.
The case already has its next date on the calendar. Fachin called an extraordinary plenary session for September 15, at 10 a.m., to review the referral of Justice André Mendonça's ruling on the messages exchanged between Moraes and Vorcaro. Mendonça, the case's rapporteur, had already sent the matter to the full court. It is now up to Fachin to rule on the OAB's request concerning Gonet.