Brazilian Superior Tribunal de Justiça legal developments

The Superior Tribunal de Justiça (STJ) in Brazil is managing several significant legal developments involving new procedural criteria and complex jurisprudence.

Initially, the court received its first special appeal under new relevance criteria established by Law 15.484/2026 and Constitutional Amendment 105. This specific case involves a dispute between the Regional Council of Engineering and Agronomy of Paraná and a lower court regarding the extinction of low-value tax executions.

Subsequently, the STJ has addressed diverse legal matters, including a ruling that capital gains from Real Estate Investment Funds (FII) through Funds of Funds (FOF) are subject to Income Tax. The court is also implementing new virtual session procedures for analyzing appeals against presidential decisions on case admissibility. Additionally, the First Section is set to resume judgments regarding the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) for unconventional oil and gas exploration, a matter involving the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) and Petrobras.