The first trial of the year in the plenary session of the (Supreme Federal Court), an action that questions rules for judges’ demonstrations on social media, is considered by the president of the court, a thermometer on the receptivity of colleagues to the proposal to create a .
Ministers will decide from this Wednesday (4) whether to validate or overturn a resolution from the (National Council of Justice) that establishes the judiciary, such as restrictions on party-political opinions and a ban on broadcasting fake news.
The text also provides recommendations such as “avoid sharing information that could harm society’s concept of the independence, impartiality, integrity and suitability of the magistrate or that could affect public trust in the Judiciary.”
Restoring trust in the STF was one of Fachin’s justifications for moving forward with a code of conduct for ministers of higher courts. The president of the court appointed the minister as rapporteur of the proposal, which must be voted on in an administrative session in October.
The action against the CNJ resolution was chosen by Fachin as the first item on the 2026 agenda as a way of keeping the issue of public ethics alive in court. Other trials that touch on this topic are scheduled for March, such as cases that state prosecutors are discussing.
Filed by the AMB (Association of Brazilian Magistrates) at the end of 2019, the action on guidelines for judges on social media was distributed to the minister’s rapporteur. The trial began in a virtual plenary session in 2022, but was interrupted by a request from Minister Kassio Nunes Marques for the debate to be taken to an in-person session.
Fachin and Cármen’s interlocutors claim that attention is focused on the demonstrations by Moraes and the minister. Both are at the center of the court’s deterioration amid the repercussions of the investigation into Banco Master’s financial fraud.
Moraes and Toffoli voted in favor of the resolution in a virtual plenary, but as the trial starts from scratch, they need to take a stand again — and, as highlighted by an assistant to the president of the STF, there is nothing stopping them from changing their opinion. In addition to the two, Fachin himself and the then minister Rosa Weber voted in this regard.
Toffoli’s case is the most peculiar because, as president of the CNJ, he was the author of the ordinance to discuss the matter. The text signed by him talks about “preserving the image” of the Judiciary and considers that “the misuse of social networks can impact society’s perception of the integrity” of Justice.
Moraes, when voting to preserve the council’s guidelines, said that the measures are justified “by the need for the Judiciary to demonstrate impartial and transparent action, which is what legitimizes judicial acts before society.” He also wrote that the resolution seeks to “obtain confidence in the authority and morals of the Judiciary.”
In the discussions that dominated the STF’s recess, however, Fachin’s expectations calculator included both Toffoli and Moraes, as well as the minister, on the wing contrary to the code of conduct. However, the president of the court did “damage reduction” work and managed to placate some of the resistance
One of these ministers told the Sheetprivately, so that discussions are carried out in a considered, constructive and passionless manner — and that the prospect of voting only after the elections means a .
This group understands that Fachin’s offensive in favor of the code is taking place against the STF, leaving magistrates and the court itself subject to a new wave of attacks and encouraging Bolsonarist parliamentarians to advance, in the National Congress, with agendas that could weaken the court.
For ministers in favor of the code of ethics for the Supreme Court and other higher courts, the judgment on the use of social networks by magistrates should be an opportunity to send messages, albeit indirectly, about the need to establish parameters capable of restoring the image of the court.
