SUPRALEGAL EFFECT OF THE SAN JOSE PACT OF COSTA RICA Maria Carolina Rollo Pontes, Lígia Maria Comis Dutra

Abstract

International treaties relating to human rights, when incorporated into Brazilian domestic law, must be immediately effective and applicable due to constitutional provisions and because they deal with issues related to human dignity. When Brazil signs an international treaty on human rights, it is obliged to comply with it, as provided for in the provisions included therein. The form determined for the integration of an international treaty on human rights is different from the incorporation of other international treaties, in addition to the hierarchical position of the law when already incorporated into the national legal system. Due to the Pact of San José de Costa Rica, ratified by Brazil, which expressly prohibits civil imprisonment for debts, the first divergence between the aforementioned treaty and the Brazilian Constitution is observed. Another major controversy arose with the advent of constitutional amendment no. 45, which added a paragraph to article 5 of the Constitution, resulting in a change in the jurisprudential position of the STF and the drafting of binding summary no. 25.