Civil Procedure Code 2015 (CPC/2015)

Introduction

The Civil Procedure Code of 2015 (CPC/2015, Law 13.105/2015) replaced the 1973 CPC and represents the most comprehensive reform of Brazilian civil procedure in decades. The CPC/2015 introduced fundamental changes to the structure of civil litigation, emphasizing precedents, cooperation, efficiency, and constitutionalization of procedural law. The Code entered into force on March 18, 2016.

Fundamental Principles

Article 1: Constitutionalization

Article 1 provides that civil procedure shall be organized, disciplined, and interpreted in accordance with the fundamental values and guarantees of the Federal Constitution. This constitutionalization ensures that procedural rules are interpreted in light of due process, adversarial proceedings, and fundamental rights.

Cooperation Principle

Article 6 establishes the cooperation principle (princípio da cooperação), requiring the judge and the parties to cooperate in achieving effective justice. The judge must: (i) ensure the parties’ procedural equality; (ii) prevent procedural abuse; (iii) resolve issues efficiently; and (iv) promote timely justice.

Adversarial Principle

The adversarial principle (princípio do contraditório, Article 9-10) requires that each party have the opportunity to respond to all arguments and evidence presented by the other party. The judge may not base a decision on facts or legal grounds not subject to adversarial discussion.

Procedure Structure

Common Procedure

The CPC/2015 eliminated multiple procedural tracks, adopting a common procedure (procedimento comum) as the default, with simplified procedures for specific cases. The common procedure includes: (i) pleadings (postulação); (ii) case management (saneamento); (iii) evidence (instrução probatória); (iv) judgment (julgamento); and (v) appeals.

Provisional Relief

The CPC/2015 unified provisional relief (tutela provisória) into a single framework with two types: (i) urgent relief (tutela de urgência), requiring likelihood of right and danger of irreparable harm; and (ii) evidentiary relief (tutela de evidência), granted when the claim is clearly supported by evidence without urgency.

Evidence

Dynamic Burden of Proof

Article 373, §1 introduces the dynamic burden of proof (distribuição dinâmica do ônus da prova), allowing the court to shift the burden of proof when it is easier for one party to produce evidence. This innovation aims to achieve procedural equality in cases of evidentiary imbalance.

Expert Evidence

The CPC/2015 maintains the court-appointed expert system but allows parties to present their own technical assistants. The expert report must be detailed and reasoned.

Electronic Evidence

The Code provides for electronic documents and digital signatures, requiring certified electronic signatures under the Brazilian Public Key Infrastructure (ICP-Brasil).

Appeals System

Appeals Structure

The CPC/2015 maintains the multi-tiered appeals system: (i) apelação (appeal from final judgment); (ii) agravo de instrumento (appeal from interlocutory decisions); (iii) embargos de declaração (clarification); (iv) embargos de divergência (divergence among courts); and (v) extraordinary appeals to the STJ and STF.

Binding Effect of Appeals

A significant change is the binding effect of appellate decisions, which may create precedent binding on lower courts in specific circumstances.

Precedent System

Stare Decisis Style

The CPC/2015 moved Brazilian procedure toward a vertical precedent system (sistema de precedentes), requiring lower courts to follow decisions of: (i) the STF; (ii) the STJ; (iii) binding precedents (súmulas vinculantes); (iv) repetitive appeals (recursos repetitivos); and (v) incidents of resolution of repetitive claims (incidentes de resolução de demandas repetitivas, IRDR).

IRDR

The incident of resolution of repetitive claims (IRDR, Articles 976-987) allows the court to select a representative case to establish precedent for multiple pending claims on the same legal issue.

Case Management

The CPC/2015 gives judges significant case management powers: (i) case scheduling; (ii) simplification of procedure; (iii) party summons to settlement conferences; (iv) evidentiary management; and (v) consolidation of repetitive cases.

Electronic Proceedings

The CPC/2015 provides for the gradual implementation of electronic proceedings (processo judicial eletrônico, PJe), which have since become the standard in most courts.

Conclusion

The CPC/2015 represents a fundamental reform of Brazilian civil procedure, introducing constitutional principles, a coherent precedent system, and modern case management tools. The emphasis on cooperation, efficiency, and predictability has transformed civil litigation, though implementation challenges remain, particularly regarding the effective functioning of the precedent system and the digital transformation of the judiciary.