Preferences and Politicization of the Judiciary in Contemporary Brazil: An Analysis of Anti-Corruption Cases

Abstract

The objective of this article is to contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon of the politicization of the judiciary from the analysis of the figure of the judge as a utility-maximizing agent. The study used a combination of quantitative and qualita-tive methods to address the following question: How can the popularity and prestige generated in the course of a judicial operation against political corruption influence the way in which a particular judge will perform their work in Brazil? The analysis of six cases corroborated the hypotheses of the study by revealing that popularity, prestige and the possibility of developing a positive self-image as an agent in the fight against corruption are key variables in the analysis of the phenomenon of the politicization of the judiciary. The main contribution of the article lies in deepening the understanding of the politicization of the judiciary and of judges as rational actors exposed to certain incentives and restrictions in the Brazilian scenario.