Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ), the country’s top court for non-constitutional federal law, is examining allegations of improper influence in judicial decisions after an internal disciplinary inquiry raised suspicions about lawyer Caroline Azeredo. The case is based on single-source reporting from Revista Oeste, which cited O Estado de S. Paulo.
The internal proceeding led to the dismissal of Márcio Toledo, a court employee who worked as an adviser in the office of Justice Nancy Andrighi. Azeredo is not formally listed as a target in the case, according to the report.
What the Inquiry Says
The STJ disciplinary commission cited three statements in its report: those of Wellington Luiz, president of the Legislative Chamber of the Federal District; his wife, Kilze Montes; and lawyer Rodrigo Alencastro, Azeredo’s former partner. The commission said the accounts by Wellington Luiz and Montes reinforced Alencastro’s claim that Azeredo allegedly offered improper influence over court decisions.
The inquiry described Azeredo as a possible “intermediary of external interests,” according to Revista Oeste. It also mentioned a possible irregular attempt to interfere in a case before the STJ, identified as AREsp 2.377.930/DF, and attributed alleged involvement to the lawyer.
That case involved a legal dispute between Wellington Luiz and a state-owned company in the Federal District. The lawmaker sought possession of land owned by the company through usucapião, a Brazilian legal mechanism similar to adverse possession.
How the Case Began
The STJ inquiry began after Alencastro filed a police report with the Civil Police of the Federal District. He said he had heard from his then-partner about an alleged attempt to sell a judicial decision connected to the case. He later repeated those claims in testimony to the STJ.
Wellington Luiz told the inquiry that a person linked to Azeredo contacted him and offered services to help obtain a favorable decision. He said he refused to hire the person. His wife also confirmed information presented to investigators, according to the report.
Azeredo did not attend a deposition in which she was expected to testify as a defense witness for Toledo, the court employee under investigation. In late 2024, the Federal District section of the Brazilian Bar Association’s ethics tribunal, known as OAB-DF, ordered her preventive suspension for three months. The procedure was later archived.
Azeredo’s Response
Azeredo rejected any accusation of wrongdoing. In a statement, she said the STJ inquiry into the alleged sale of decisions did not include her among its targets and stressed that she has never been indicted, charged or made a defendant in a criminal case.
She said the only reference to her name came from a police report filed by her former partner, with whom she has a legal dispute. Azeredo also said protective measures under Brazil’s Maria da Penha Law, the country’s domestic violence statute, have been granted in her favor since April 2024.
The lawyer said a disciplinary procedure against her at OAB-DF was closed after the ethics tribunal found no evidence tying her to the alleged facts. She said her legal work has always followed ethics and technical rigor “without any stain,” according to the statement quoted by Revista Oeste.
Azeredo also said the matter had been examined in federal police and civil proceedings without any finding of illicit conduct on her part. She described the accusations as retaliation by her former partner.