Participatory justice
Conectas and SBDP (Brazilian Public Law Association) will hold a workshop on how to prepare amicus curiae briefs in São Paulo on August 5. These briefs, provided for in the Constitution of 1988, permit any citizen or organization to contribute their independent opinions to a legal case. Since it was created 12 years ago, Conectas has filed more than 40 amicus curiae briefs to the Supreme Court – the highest number by any civil society organization.
“The goal of the workshop is to create the conditions for greater participation by society in the constitutional debate, by means of a still underused legal instrument,” said Juana Kweitel, program director at Conectas. “This type of knowledge is particularly important for human rights defenders and organizations that want to influence decisions in this area.”
During the classes, to be given by guest experts, the students will learn step-by-step how to prepare the document and they will also debate the democratization of access to the Brazilian justice system. The final task of the group will be to prepare an amicus curiae brief on the constitutionality of Resolution 175 (2013), issued by the National Justice Council (CNJ), that requires all notary offices in Brazil to convert same-sex civil unions into civil marriages (ADI 4966).
Since this is a pilot course, the workshop is only available for alumni of the SBDP Graduate School.
