Lewandowski’s favorite enters the dispute for a vacancy in the STF – 03/14/2023 – Politics

The main candidate for the nomination of President Lula (PT) to the post of Minister of the STF (Federal Supreme Court), lawyer Cristiano Zanin has as obstacles the possibility of a series of conflicts of interest in the court and competition from Bahian lawyer Manoel Carlos de Almeida Neto, former secretary general of the STF and close to Justice Ricardo Lewandowski.

The vacancy on the Supreme will be open until May with the retirement of Lewandowski, who will turn 75, the age limit to remain on the court.

Lewandowski’s opinion will be important in choosing the president of the STF. In the opinion of people close to Lula, he is the only minister among the PT nominees who was faithful to the party at all times, including in situations of pressure from the media and the opposition, such as the monthly allowance.

Manoel Carlos has accompanied Lewandowski to public events and has been praised by the minister. Another name that has been considered for the Supreme Court is Bruno Dantas, president of the TCU (Union Court of Auditors), who has good dialogue with Congress.

Favorite, Zanin is Lula’s personal lawyer and defended the president in a series of Lava Jato processes. He created a relationship of closeness and trust with Lula over the last decade, before the PT was arrested, and became known for his assiduity in defending the president.

Lula had convictions annulled because the Supreme Court considered former judge Sergio Moro partial, based on an appeal filed by Zanin.

The president himself said earlier this month that “everybody would understand” if he appointed his personal lawyer to the STF. But, if he becomes a minister, Zanin would be legally prevented from judging actions in which he acted as a lawyer, including cases related to Lava Jato.

An example is the process that requested access to Odebrecht’s Drousys and MyWebDay systems, respectively for internal communication and accounting and payment control of undue advantages. This action has more than 20 ramifications, involving different politicians.

According to the law, a magistrate is prevented from judging cases in which he, his spouse or a relative have acted – he is a partner of his wife, Valeska Teixeira, in her office.

In higher courts, Zanin acts or acted in actions in which he also defends companies such as Americanas and J&F, parties such as the PT, politicians such as Governor Paulo Dantas (MDB-AL) and those accused of Lava Jato.

In addition to impediments, proximity to Lula may be an obstacle for Zanin in the Supreme Court. A judge must declare himself a suspect if, for example, he is a close friend or a cardinal enemy of one of the parties.

In this case, the assessment is more subjective and it would be up to him to assess whether his proximity to Lula would make him suspect of acting in the actions.

The parties to proceedings, such as lawyers and the Public Ministry, may also request impediment or suspicion. “The concrete possibility of offending the impartiality of the judge is enough to recommend his removal from conducting a process”, says retired lawyer and judge Cecilia Mello.

It is not known whether Zanin will plead as a suspect. The lawyer himself has already told interlocutors that he may act in any new cases involving Lula. When contacted, he did not comment on the matter.

During his career as Lula’s lawyer, Zanin was known for questioning the impartiality of the judges who tried cases against the president, often pointing out what he considered to be suspicious relationships.

This is the case of Moro himself and Judge Gabriela Hardt, substitute for the 13th Federal Court of Curitiba, and the judges of TRF-4 (Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region) João Pedro Gebran Neto and Carlos Thompson Flores.

Against Gebran, for example, Zanin asked for suspicion because, among other reasons, he considered that he had “clear friendship” with Moro. Moro himself, for the lawyer, behaved as if he were Lula’s enemy.

According to representatives of the legal world heard by the Sheetthe possible appointment of Zanin may violate the principle of impersonality and compromise the legitimacy of the court before society.

Zanin’s proximity to Lula also raises questions from anti-corruption entities.

“All the international anti-corruption conventions that Brazil is a signatory to —three of which the country is revising this year— include the independence of the Judiciary as a commitment for the country”, says Bruno Brandão, executive director of Transparency International.

“The greater the distance between the president and the nominee to the STF, the greater the security of the impersonality of the decision and, therefore, the commitment to the independence of the country’s main court.”

Despite Lewandowski’s movement and a certain crowd among jurists close to the government in favor of Manoel, Zanin is pointed out as President Lula’s favorite.

This predilection can be measured by Lula’s reaction to the rupture of the partnership that Zanin maintained with his father-in-law, Roberto Teixeira.

In August 2022, Zanin and Valeska formalized, by telegram, their unilateral withdrawal from the Teixeira Zanin Martins office, established almost 20 years earlier.

Accompanied by the entire team, the couple founded the Zanin Martins office, officially breaking with Roberto and Larissa Teixeira, Valeska’s father and sister.

Lula’s compadre, Teixeira went to the PT to complain about his son-in-law. According to these reports, Teixeira, who has been Lula’s friend and lawyer since 1980, presented his version of the split, including even a dispute over the sharing of office furniture.

Even informed of the traumatic circumstance of the breakup, Lula kept Zanin as his legal representative, in addition to public praise for the lawyer. Zanin and Valeska were among the guests at the cocktail party celebrating the president’s inauguration.

Roberto Teixeira did not accompany them, although he was in Brasilia.

Another demonstration of appreciation was the choice of Zanin for the legal team of Lula’s campaign. In the words of a friend of Lula’s, Zanin is untouchable, and this favoritism is due to the success of the legal strategy that culminated in the president’s eligibility.

The personification of this victory in Zanin even fuels jealousy among members of the group of Prerogativas lawyers, active in the PT’s defense.

When contacted, Roberto Teixeira stated that “the division of the office has already been concluded”. Also wanted, Valeska and Cristiano Zanin did not manifest themselves.