Current Projects

The Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) in the Context of Democratic Erosion: Public Image and Judicial Legitimacy

Coordinator: Fabiana Luci de Oliveira
Funding Agency: CNPq (304008/2022-2)

This research examines the relationship between the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) and politics, focusing on judicial decision-making processes and their social and political implications. The study investigates the public image of the STF between 2019 and 2022, seeking to understand the Court's prominent role in Brazil's political arena. To this end, the project analyzes media portrayals of the STF's interactions with the Executive and Legislative branches, addressing the Court's legitimacy and perceptions regarding its independence, transparency, and responsiveness. Additionally, the research explores attempts by these branches to shift the Judiciary's orientation toward an anti-democratic direction, as well as resistance strategies employed against such efforts, identifying their nature and mechanisms.

The Supreme Court in the Media – Independence, Transparency, and Accountability

Coordinator: Fabiana Luci de Oliveira
Funding Agency: CNPq (408404/2022-1)
Research Team: Desirée Ferreira Marques Ribeiro; Gabriel Garcia Moreira; Lorena Cristina da Silva Mello; Talitha Passos de Lima

This study focuses on the public image of the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) between 2019 and 2022, aiming to understand the Court's political prominence through its media visibility. The primary objective is to analyze how the STF's actions were portrayed in Brazil’s two highest-circulation newspapers (Folha de S. Paulo and O Globo), examining the predominant type of coverage (legal or political) and the most recurrent themes in framing the institution. The study addresses the Court's legitimacy and perceptions regarding its independence, transparency, and accountability. The selected timeframe is characterized as a period of democratic recession. During this same period, the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated Brazil’s ongoing political crisis, intensifying tensions between the government and the Supreme Court. Thus, this timeframe allows for an assessment of how the STF's public image was shaped by historical and contextual factors.

The theoretical-methodological framework draws on research concerning judicial legitimacy, public opinion, and judicial behavior in contexts of threatened democracies. The study adopts a documentary approach, relying on systematic data collection and content analysis of news coverage on the STF. This research contributes to studies that seek to understand how constitutional courts behave and are perceived during institutional instability, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—particularly Goal 16.6, which promotes transparency, accountability, and the effectiveness of democratic institutions.

The Brazilian Federal Supreme Court (STF) in the Context of Democratic Backsliding and Resistance 

Coordinator: Fabiana Luci de Oliveira
Funding Agency: FAPESP (2023/12533-5)
Research Team: Ana Lívia Ventura Massinelli; Felipe Silva de Campos

This postdoctoral research project includes an international research stay at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), examining the relationship between legal professions and politics in Brazil. The study adopts a "tug-of-war" framework between democratic and anti-democratic forces, seeking to understand the varying implications of these tensions at the intersection of legal professions and politics. The research investigates the STF's positioning in this struggle, assessing whether and how the Court may act as either a vector of democratic backsliding or a bulwark against it. The study maps formal and informal mechanisms of influence, connecting conservative groups both inside and outside judicial institutions.

The research period at UCI will examine whether similar formal and informal influence mechanisms have been employed in the U.S. Supreme Court. This phase involves exploratory interviews with experts, a review of journalistic materials, and an analysis of relevant literature on the U.S. Supreme Court’s role as either a driver of democratic regression or a barrier against it.