Brazilian Judicial Journals
Brazilian state and federal courts release brief updates about cases currently in progress through a digitally published “e-journal.” Although each Brazilian judicial journal is published by a different office in a particular court or group of courts, the information and formatting is similar across sources.
When is a Brazilian judicial journal entry true for?
Most events described in the journals take place in the weeks around the date of publication, which is typically visible at the top, bottom, and occasionally on the first page of each edition. Pursuant to legal requirements, announcements may be repeated across multiple editions during a specific period.
What is included in a Brazilian judicial journal entry?
Most journal issues comprise case headers with party names, case numbers, and status updates; administrative announcements; and, in some cases, the complete or partial text of individual decisions.
Each issue is typically broken up into a handful of volumes (cadernos), organized by content and, in some cases, additionally by location. The first and last volumes usually contain administrative announcements, while the bulk of the judicial content is covered in the middle volumes.
Which types of cases are published in each journal?
Information about ordinary first instance and second instance state-level cases is published in the journals for each state. Information about ordinary first instance and second instance federal cases is published in the journals of the relevant federal circuit. Subsequent appeals are published in journals specific to the relevant higher court of appeal.
State and federal courts typically cede jurisdiction on specialized matters (e.g. military justice, electoral issues, constitutional issues) to specialized courts, which publish their own separate journals.
See the table below for an overview of the journals that report developments in ordinary cases at each level for some of Brazil’s most populous states and federal circuits:
| Jurisdiction | Types of Legal Matters Included | Publishing authority | Volumes with Case Information |
| State of São Paulo | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | São Paulo State Court of Justice |
Caderno 2 – Segunda Instância Caderno 3 – Primeira Instância – Capital Caderno 4 – Primeira Instância – Interior Parte 1-3 |
| State of Rio de Janeiro | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Rio de Janeiro State Court of Justice |
Caderno 2 – Segunda Instância Caderno 3 – Primeira Instância (Capital) Caderno 4 – Primeira Instância (Interior) |
| State of Santa Catarina | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Santa Catarina Judiciary |
Matérias Jurídicas das Comarcas Matérias Jurídicas das Turmas de Recursos e Uniformização Matérias Jurídicas do Tribunal de Justiça |
| State of Paraná | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Paraná State Court of Justice |
Tribunal de Justiça Comarca da Capital Comarcas do Interior |
| State of Rio Grande do Sul | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Rio Grande do Sul State Court of Justice |
Capital Primeiro Grau Interior Primeiro Grau Capital Segundo Grau |
| State of Mato Grosso do Sul | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Mato Grosso do Sul State Court of Justice |
Caderno 2 – Segunda Instância Caderno 3 – Primeira Instância |
| State of Espírito Santo | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of state law | Espírito Santo Judiciary | – |
| Federal – National | Appeals from state and federal courts not pertaining to constitutional matters | Superior Court of Justice | – |
| Federal – 2nd Circuit (Rio de Janeiro; Espírito Santo) | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of federal law in the second circuit | Federal Judiciary |
Tribunal Regional Federal da Segunda Região Seção Judiciária do Rio de Janeiro Seção Judiciária do Espírito Santo |
| Federal – 3rd Circuit (Mato Grosso do Sul; São Paulo) | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of federal law in the third circuit | Federal Judiciary |
Publicações Judiciais I – TRF Publicações Judiciais II – TRF Publicações Judiciais I – Capital São Paulo Publicações Judiciais II – Capital São Paulo Publicações Judiciais I – Interior SP e MS Publicações Judiciais II – Interior SP e MS Publicações Judiciais I – Juizados Especiais Federais Publicações Judiciais II – Juizados Especiais Federais |
| Federal – 4th Circuit (Paraná; Rio Grande do Sul; Santa Catarina) | Non-specialized first instance and second instance matters of federal law in the fourth circuit | Federal Judiciary |
Publicações Judiciais Publicações Judiciais II |