THE BRAZILIAN SUPREME COURT AND POLITICS: INSTITUTIONAL EXPLANATIONS ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INDEPENDENCE AND EXERCISE OF JUDICIAL REVIEW

Abstract

This article aims to investigate the correlation between judicial independence and the legal power to judicial review when political issues are involved, as well as their impact on the expansion (or restriction) of judicial review in Brazil. To achieve its purposes, the methodology used is bibliographic and legal-comparative research, and supported by political theories and constitutional law that analyze the problems from a political-institutional point of view, considering the influence of institutional aspects related to judicial independence and judicial review in the behavior of the Brazilian Constitutional Court. It is concluded that the institutional design given by the Federal Constitution of 1988 to the Brazilian Supreme Court had a great impact on judicial independence and on the Court’s behavior in the judicial review, mainly due to the norms related to legitimized and expansion of the actions of concentrated judicial review, form of appointment of its ministers, length of stay in office and process for removal from office. In addition, it is possible to observe an increase in the judicial review on issues of a political nature, but the exercise of this legal power by the Brazilian Supreme Court is relatively smaller than in other Latin American constitutional courts.