General Prosecutor of the Republic v. National Congress and Governor of Rio de Janeiro v. State Courts and Rio de Janeiro Congress

Direct Action of Unconstitutionality No. 4.277 (2009)

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General Prosecutor of the Republic v. National Congress and Governor of Rio de Janeiro v. State Courts and Rio de Janeiro Congress

Brazil Federal Supreme Court
Direct Action of Unconstitutionality No. 4.277 (2009)

Facts

The governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (the governor) and the General Prosecutor of the Republic (the general prosecutor) (plaintiffs) brought two cases to court, challenging Brazil’s laws on family. The plaintiffs sought to extend Brazil’s family laws to include families formed by same-sex couples. The plaintiffs argued that same-sex couples were capable of forming family units that demonstrated continuity, publicity, durability, and the goal of forming a family. The plaintiffs argued that the lower courts were inappropriately excluding same-sex couples from the legal definition of a stable union, which underpinned the legal definition of a family under Brazilian law. The general prosecutor specifically argued that the lower court interpretations violated the constitutional principles that protected the dignity of the human person and that prohibited “odious discrimination.” The Brazil Federal Supreme Court decided to hear the two matters as a consolidated direct action of unconstitutionality against Article 1.723 of the Brazilian Civil Code.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Britto, J.)

Concurrence (Mendez, J.)

Concurrence (Lewandowski, J.)

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