The president of the (Supreme Federal Court), Luiz, publicly defended this Tuesday (10) that magistrates act with “a healthy distance from the parties and interests at stake” and, behind the scenes, moves to control the crisis.
The minister has spoken with colleagues at the court, provided support to the office of , rapporteur of the case, and resumed internally the .
He held conversations with Mendonça, including about the structure for carrying out the work on the Master case — the two spoke for the last time on Monday night (9). Regarding the code of ethics, one of the Supreme President’s flagships, he also spoke again with Minister Cármen Lúcia, rapporteur on the topic, as he understood it to be a response to the crisis.
This Tuesday, during and in the second instance, Fachin did not directly mention the investigation into the fraud attributed to Master nor the deterioration of and , but he gave messages linked to questions that affect ministers and acknowledged that there was a “moment of tension”.
“In our country, the healthy distance we maintain from the parties and interests at stake is what allows, in practice, a minimum of social justice. Impartiality is not coldness, it is a condition for the possibility of equity”, he stated.
According to him, Justice cannot be “imprisoned in parochial interests, economic convenience or political calculations”. Judicial decisions, continued the minister, must always be well-founded and “capable of surviving the most ruthless public examination”.
Last week, messages exchanged by Moraes and Master’s owner came to light on the day he was arrested for the first time. The minister denies having received the messages.
At the opening of the judicial year, on February 2, Fachin announced Cármen to be the rapporteur for the code of conduct defended by him — a project in recent months, but which faces resistance from some magistrates.
The president of the STF previously spoke with his colleagues about the nomination and signaled to them that the debate should wait until after the elections, as suggested by a group of ministers. With Cármen’s choice, the progress of the theme came under her control.
But the new intensification of the Master crisis made Fachin look for his colleague to keep the channel open on the topic. “I will continue seeking to provide Brazilian society with legal security with legitimacy,” he said in his February speech.
On February 5, Minister Flávio Dino suspended restrictions in the three Powers and limited remuneration to the constitutional ceiling. The plenary then looked into the issue on the 25th of that month and bet on the trial as an opportunity to give a nod to society and restore, at least in part, the image of the Supreme Court, worn down by the repercussions of the inquiry into the Master.
This Tuesday, Fachin told court presidents that Brazilian judges “cannot be underpaid”, but that the category’s functional privileges “can only be sustained as long as public trust exists” and that any payment must be supported by the Constitution.
“There is an ongoing debate about remuneration, benefits and what the Constitution allows and what it prohibits. I did not come here to impose conclusions, and I know that there are legitimate legal positions to be debated through the appropriate channels. But I came to say, with the respect that each one deserves, that the Judiciary cannot leave this moment less than it entered”, he stated.
On another front, Fachin is trying to strengthen ties in the court and keep up to date with the progress of the most controversial cases. In addition to Monday’s conversation with Mendonça, the two have been speaking on the eve of operations or important decisions on the cases.
Fachin also maintains these negotiations on weekends and holidays. One example was a lunch with two ministers on Ash Wednesday, February 18th. During the period, Moraes had ordered an operation against suspected Federal Revenue data leaks involving court ministers and their relatives.
The president of the STF has also spoken with Moraes. The judge warned Fachin, for example, that the Barci de Moraes firm, which has Viviane Barci de Moraes among its partners, would release a note this Monday. Another interlocutor has been the dean, Gilmar Mendes, with whom he also had recent conversations.
Fachin had already granted an additional assistant judge to Mendonça’s office, which was requested even before the Master case rapporteur was drawn. The magistrate also reports on another high-profile investigation: INSS fraud.
Now, he has also authorized more servers for support. The cabinet must still reorganize the staff given the volume of work and personnel. One possibility is to relocate people who are already assigned to the office and know how the team works for INSS and/or Master cases and reallocate reinforcements to other processes.
The last magistrate to join Mendonça’s team took office on February 18 of this year. With him, the team was left with two assistant judges and two instructors — the latter can conduct criminal hearings.
