Brazil Labor Court annuls slave labor infraction against judge's wife

The Regional Labor Court of the 12th Region (TRT-12) has unanimously annulled an administrative process that confirmed a labor infraction involving conditions analogous to slavery. The case concerns the rescue of Sônia Maria de Jesus, a Black and deaf woman, from the residence of Jorge Luiz de Borba, a judge of the Santa Catarina Court of Justice, in Florianópolis.

The decision benefits Ana Cristina Gayotto de Borba, the judge's wife and the alleged employer. The court ruled that the administrative process violated principles of adversary proceedings and full defense because notifications were sent directly to the accused instead of her legal counsel, despite an express request to communicate only through lawyers. This procedural error prevented the timely filing of an appeal.

As a result, the court ordered the removal of Ana Cristina's name from the “dirty list” of employers responsible for slave labor. While the Ministry of Labor and Employment has already complied with the removal, the Attorney General's Office (AGU) and the Labor Public Prosecutor's Office (MPT) have indicated they will appeal the decision. The court's ruling focused solely on procedural regularity and did not analyze whether the worker was actually subjected to slave-like conditions.