In a recent decision, the 1st Section of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) established the understanding that the extinction of the enforcement of a collective judgment, due to intercurrent prescription, does not prevent the individual enforcement of the same judicial title.
In other words, even if the enforcement of a collective judgment is terminated, there is no impediment to the beneficiaries of that judgment seeking their rights individually.
This understanding was established in the judgment of the Repetitive Appeals, with Justice Herman Benjamin as Rapporteur, especially analyzing the case involving the Union of Federal Public Workers in Health and Social Security (Sindsprev).
Understanding the Sindsprev case
The collective sentence, which recognized the right to count public service time prior to Law 8.112/1990 for the purposes of annuities, became final in 2006. However, as Sindsprev didn’t begin to enforce the sentence in time, the statute of limitations expired. The Union then began to contest the individual executions, alleging unfavorable res judicata and statute of limitations.
In other words, the collective sentence recognized the right to count the time spent in public service before 1990 to calculate additional salary. However, as the union did not begin to comply with the decision in time, it was declared that the deadline for this had expired.
Justice Herman Benjamin stressed that collective res judicata favors the members of the group, but does not prevent them from seeking enforcement of their rights individually. In addition, the STJ reaffirmed that the statute of limitations for individual enforcement is interrupted by the filing of the judgment by the extraordinary legitimized party, allowing the holder of the individual right to await the outcome of the collective process.
This decision reinforces the protection of individual rights in class actions, ensuring that the beneficiaries have the right to enforce their claims, regardless of the outcome of the class action.
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