Loss of parliamentary seat as a consequence of criminal conviction: the Brazilian Supreme Court jurisprudence

Abstract

This paper is related to the arrest of parliamentarians under the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 and the loss of parliamentary seat as a consequence of the final criminal conviction. The relevant constitutional provisions are not clear, are ambiguous and even confusing. Therefore, the precedents of the Brazilian Supreme Court on the subject are hesitant or contradictory, change over time and as the composition of the Court. There is also significant impact on members of local parliaments. Anyway, the important thing is that impunity has today less and less space.