The Federal Supreme Court postponed the judgment of Extraordinary Appeal (RE) 966,177 in 2022. The matter had been dragging on for years in the STF, which recognized in 2016 the existence of a general repercussion of the constitutional issue, “under the terms of article 1,035, § 1, of the Code of Civil Procedure/2015, combined with article 323 of the RISTF.”
The repercussion was recognized following a question from the Public Prosecutor's Office of Rio Grande do Sul regarding the ruling of the Appeals Panel of the Special Criminal Courts in the state that considered the conduct of gambling exploitation to be atypical, disregarding the practice as a criminal misdemeanor under the argument that the grounds that supported the prohibition are not in line with current constitutional principles.
On the occasion, rapporteur minister Luiz Fux highlighted that all the Criminal Appeal Panels of the Court of Justice of the State of Rio Grande do Sul had been understanding the demand in the same sense, meaning that in Rio Grande do Sul the practice of gambling no longer considered a criminal misdemeanor.
“Thus, I understand that the relevance of the topic is indisputable and demands recognition of its general repercussion,” stated Luiz Fux at the time.
Lawyer Laerte Luis Gschwenter, who represents the case, points to the approval of Bill 2,234/2022 by the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ) of the Senate, which aims to legalize gambling in Brazil, as a factor for the STF submit the matter to the Court Plenary. And he concludes:
“In view of the above, it is requested, as a matter of preference and urgency, that the agenda for judgment on the merits by the Plenary of this Honorable Court be agreed as quickly as possible. The result of which is a reasonable, irrefutable and mandatory measure for the DECRIMINALIZATION OF GAMBLING throughout Brazil.”
Source: GMB
