O OAB Federal Council and the College of Presidents of the sections sent this Monday (23) a letter to the Federal Supreme Court (STF) requesting the conclusion of investigations long-term, especially Survey nº 4,781, known as the ‘Fake News’ inquiry. The entity also requests that new procedures with a similar format not be opened.
The OAB stated that the process, opened in March 2019, is about to complete seven years of processing and that this requires a careful analysis regarding the reasonable duration and the delimitation of its object.
No document forwarded to the president of the STF, minister Edson Fachina states that it has “extreme institutional concern” with investigations of indefinite duration. According to the entity, the investigation was born in an exceptional context and, therefore, must observe constitutional limits and criteria of exceptionality.
“Inquiry No. 4,781, opened in March 2019, is approaching seven years of processing, which, in itself, recommends careful examination from the perspective of the reasonable duration of the procedures and the necessary delimitation of their object”, defended the OAB.
The Order recognizes the role of the Supreme Court in defense of democracy, but emphasizes that combating institutional attacks needs to respect due legal process, broad defense, adversarial proceedings and freedom of expression.
The letter also highlights the need to protect guarantees of journalistic activity and the prerogatives of lawespecially on topics such as professional secrecy, access to data and confidentiality between lawyer and client. The OAB states that leaks and improper obtaining of confidential data are unacceptable and must be rigorously investigated.
Finally, the entity requests measures to conclude the so-called “perpetual investigations” and hold an institutional hearing to discuss the issue with Brazilian lawyers.
