Cármen Lúcia: reliability crisis in the Judiciary is serious and needs to be recognized

Minister Cármen Lúcia, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), declared this Friday that the crisis of reliability of the Brazilian population in the Judiciary, especially in the Court, is “serious” and needs to be recognized by the magistrates. According to her, on the other hand, despite there being “errors and mistakes” that need to be improved, the instance remains fundamental to guaranteeing the rights of citizens provided for in the Constitution.

— We need the Judiciary. Even though it is, like everything in the human experience, limited by the imperfection that is characteristic of humanity. It needs to be better each time, so that the Law is applied and citizens have more confidence. The reliability crisis in the Judiciary is serious, serious and needs to be recognized — said Cármen, in a lecture given this morning at FGV Direito Rio, in Rio de Janeiro.

At the same time that he recognized society’s reservations with the Court, Cármen indicated that there is an “international movement”, without mentioning which one, to delegitimize the Brazilian Judiciary.

— We have a reliability problem in Brazil, especially in the Supreme Court, I am aware of this. It is also necessary to know what mistakes and errors there are that need to be improved. But there is an international movement, as we know, so that we do not have the Judiciary — he stated.

The minister also stated that the duty to improve the Law involves ensuring that young people do not lose their desire to become judges. She highlighted the difficulties in the field, and criticized the slowness and excessive processes that magistrates have to deal with. According to Cármen, there are around 18 thousand judges to deal with more than 80 million cases, which he considers inadequate.

Trust in the Supreme

According to the latest round of the Datafolha survey, released this week, 75% of Brazilians say that STF ministers have too much power, while 71% consider the Court essential for the protection of democracy. The survey also points out that 75% say that people believe in the STF less now than before, and 20% disagree with this.

Last month, Datafolha also showed that the rate of Brazilians who do not trust the Supreme Court reached a record high, reaching 43%. Among those who claimed to “trust a lot”, the percentage fell from 24% to 16%.

Growth is driven by the alleged involvement of Court ministers with the Banco Master scandal. Still according to the same survey, 55% of the population believes that Court magistrates are involved in fraud.