The working group created by Brazil's Federal Supreme Court (STF) to discuss judicial reform has received 87 proposals from civil society organizations and institutions, according to G1. The suggestions include fixed terms for STF justices, limits on individual rulings, and new mechanisms for oversight and accountability.
Among the most contentious ideas is the creation of 10 to 12 year terms for justices, a departure from Brazil's current system in which STF justices hold lifetime appointments until mandatory retirement. This would be a significant shift for a court accustomed to no term limits. Other proposals call for disciplinary authority over the justices themselves, cutting the court's 60 day annual recess to 30 days, a code of ethics for justices of Brazil's higher courts, an effective pay cap barring bonuses from exceeding a justice's base salary, and a quarantine period for judges after they leave the bench.
Most of the submissions focus on mechanisms to prevent litigation and reduce repetitive lawsuits by favoring consensus based solutions. Others call for modernizing court management and strengthening the weight given to consolidated case law.
Artificial intelligence draws scrutiny
The proposals reveal significant concern over the use of artificial intelligence in the judiciary. One recommendation calls for a governance framework for AI use in courts, with mandatory human oversight at sensitive stages of legal proceedings. The University of São Paulo's law school (FDRP-USP) argues for a constitutional or legal ban on AI replacing human judgment. According to G1, the school's proposal reads as follows:
This prohibition should be elevated to constitutional status, through an amendment adding a paragraph to Article 93, or alternatively to legal status, by amending Complementary Law 35/1979, establishing that any decision based on artificial intelligence must be issued, reviewed and signed by a judge, with no delegation, full or partial, of the decision making function.
The National Federation of Federal Judiciary Workers (Fenajufe) also addressed the issue, arguing, according to G1, that AI governance should constitute a permanent institutional policy based on transparency, democratic participation, human oversight, public accountability, data protection and continuous assessment of the social and institutional impacts of the technologies used. Brazil's national bar association (OAB), through its state chapters and affiliated entities, proposed limiting single justice rulings, revising the STF's jurisdiction, promoting gender and racial diversity, salary transparency, and governance rules for artificial intelligence.
The 87 proposals will be reviewed starting in September by a group of 19 legal scholars, judges and academics, who have until the end of the year to consolidate a report with recommendations to modernize the system. Brazil's last judicial reform dates back to 2004. STF Chief Justice Edson Fachin has already appointed Justice Cármen Lúcia as rapporteur for a proposed code of ethics, but that discussion is not expected to move forward until after October's elections, and some within the court suggest the debate could be pushed to 2027.