On Wednesday (21/06), the Senate approved by 58 votes to 18 the appointment of Cristiano Zanin to become the new minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF). The first nominated by President Lula (PT) in his third term, Zanin is a friend of the President, who he defended during the actions of Operation Car Wash. This fact generated a series of criticisms by the opposition, which claimed that his selection would break principles and take into consideration only the fact that Zanin is an ally of the President.
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Profile
Born in Piracicaba (SP), Zanin graduated in law from Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC-SP). Author of the book Lawfare, An Introduction, in partnership with Valeska Teixeira Zanin Martins, his wife, and Rafael Valim, he commanded Lula’s defense throughout Operation Car Wash, launched in 2014.
Zanin has been a lawyer for over two decades and maintains a law firm alongside his wife. On the firm’s webpage, it is stated that Zanin and Valeska are experts in dealing with lawfare, “an illegitimate form of using the law that has been adopted by some national and international authorities to obtain political, geopolitical, economic and military results”.
The lawyer is not affiliated with a political party. In addition, despite defending Lula in criminal cases, he is not a specialist in the criminal area, but in civil and procedural law. He will be part of the Supreme Court until November 2050, considering the Court’s retirement rules.
Evaluation by the Senate
Media sources reported in the past weeks that Zanin did a large political work with important stakeholders in Brasília, which paved the way for his approval. His interview with Senators went smoothly in part because of that and in part because President Lula has managed to grow a good support in this part of Congress, differently from what happened in the Federal Chamber. In the Senate, he was even praised by senators who are critical of Lula.
Another factor that played in favor of Zanin was his image of guarantor —who reinforces the right to full defense of the accused and investigated. Zanin managed to gain the sympathy of current STF ministers and many politicians, including those linked to former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), after being noticed for questioning Lava Jato. During his career as a lawyer for Lula, Zanin was known for questioning the impartiality of judges in actions against the president, often appearing what he thought were suspicious relationships. Political experts say that this was quite important because many senators are investigated for crimes, and this could mean better conditions in the development of their cases. The result was an approval by far mora than the necessary number of votes, 58, while 41 were needed.
Principle of Impersonality
Lula’s choice was the subject of questions that it could represent a violation of the principle of impersonality, according to which the State must act in favor of the community and do not harm, nor benefit someone specifically.
Our Analysis:
By making this choice, President Lula seems to be aiming to fight any future attempts of “lawfare” – a legal war strategy – against him. Zanin’s appointment would be an additional help towards that objective. However, this creates precedent for other presidents to do the same and follow to a scenario in which presidents and former ones could become unimputable.
Source: Estadão; G1; Folha de SP.
