Procedures
2015 Code of Civil Procedure with binding precedent mechanisms
Lei 13.105/2015 enacted a new Código de Processo Civil emphasising conciliation, cooperation between the parties and procedural efficiency. It strengthened binding precedent through súmulas and the repetitive-appeals system, allowing the higher courts to decide a representative case and apply the holding to all suspended parallel cases. A conciliation or mediation hearing is normally the first step after filing.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Federal procedural code applied by federal and state courts
- Deadline — Answer: 15 business days from the conciliation hearing
- Deadline — Appeal (apelação): 15 business days
- Deadline — Deadlines are counted in business days under the 2015 Code
Governing law
- Lei 13.105/2015 - Código de Processo Civil
- Lei 9.099/1995 - Juizados Especiaissmall claims
- Lei 13.140/2015 - Mediação
In practice
Counting deadlines in business days rather than calendar days was one of the most consequential practical changes in the 2015 Code. The repetitive-appeals mechanism (recursos repetitivos and the IRDR) exists to manage mass litigation: once a leading case is decided, the ratio binds lower courts, which is a significant qualification of the traditional civil-law approach to precedent.