Expansion of the privileged forum brings legal uncertainty, warns Ives Gandra

The position of the majority of ministers of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in favor of expanding the scope of the privileged forum, expressed last Friday (12) by the judgment voting scoreboard that deals with the topic, is highlighted by professor and jurist Ives Gandra da Silva Martins as another factor of legal uncertainty.

“On the one hand, the Supreme Court’s decision to expand its field of action places an even greater burden on its ministers. On the other hand, it brings a certain legal uncertainty to the extent that a few years ago the STF itself decided strictly to the contrary”, he commented to People’s Gazette.

The jurist understands that every time the STF changes its orientation, it generates instability precisely because it is the last instance of the Judiciary. “Thus, I personally would prefer that the issue of forum by function prerogative continued exactly with the hypotheses provided for by the constitutional text, without any extension”, he observed.

Ives Gandra Martins makes a point of highlighting that, even if he disagrees, it is necessary to respect the decision of the members of the Supreme Court, whom he says he admires. “As Oscar Dias Corrêa said, when he was at the STF, ministers are the ones who have the right to make the last mistake,” he added.

In the same way that he disagrees with the expansion of the forum, Martins was also directly opposed to its reduction, as considered in bills. “I understand that the higher courts are the most qualified to judge authorities, such as deputies, senators and Presidents of the Republic. The fact that they have the responsibility to represent the people, they should be judged by the most qualified and experienced,” he said.

The expansion of the scope of the privileged forum was proposed by Minister Gilmar Mendes, of the STF, in response to a habeas corpus from senator Zequinha Marinho (Podemos-PA), questioning investigation into acts carried out in 2013, when he was a federal deputy. After that, he was elected vice-governor of Pará and then senator, a position he currently holds. Throughout this period, the process alternated in terms of competence, depending on the position Marinho held.

In addition to rapporteur Gilmar Mendes, five other STF ministers followed the vote, which completely reviews the understanding reached by the Court in 2018, which states that politicians without a mandate should not be held accountable for acts committed while holding office. The change paves the way for the eventual trial of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) directly in the last instance.