Brazilian Supreme Court has new chief justice

Justice Luís Roberto Barroso will be sworn in Thursday (Sep. 28) as the head of Brazil’s Supreme Court. He will serve a two-year term and will hold office until October 2025. Justice Barroso will replace Justice Rosa Weber, who presided over the court’s last session Wednesday (27).

The inauguration should be attended by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as well as lower house speaker Arthur Lira and Senate head Rodrigo Pacheco, in addition to other authorities from the three branches of power.

The ceremony will feature singer Maria Bethânia, who was invited by Justice Barroso to sing the national anthem. Approximately a thousand people have been invited.

Justice Barroso will also preside over the National Council of Justice. The deputy head of the top court will be Justice Edson Fachin.

Profile

Justice Barroso joined the Supreme Court in 2013. He was appointed by former President Dilma Rousseff to the position vacated by Justice Carlos Ayres Britto, who retired in November 2012 at the age of 70.

Born in Vassouras, Rio de Janeiro, he holds a doctorate in Public Law from the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) and a master’s degree in Law from Yale Law School, in the US.

Before becoming a member of the Supreme Court, Justice Barroso worked as a private lawyer. He was counsel for a number of cases before the court, including the interruption of pregnancy in cases of anencephalic fetuses, stem cell research, same-sex unions, and the defense of the non-extradition of former Italian activist Cesare Battisti.