Camila Vieira Guimarães
Lawyer at Marcos Martins Advogados
When companies enter into a legal transaction by signing a contract, they usually elect the competent forum for any legal dispute regarding the legal relationship, and any lawsuit must be filed in that location defined in the instrument.
It is common, however, for the forum of choice to be questioned, on the pretext, for example, of a violation of access to justice or the technical and financial capacity of the party.
In this context, the Court of Justice of the Federal District recognized the forum elected in the contract as the competent one for judging an execution proposed by a fuel company, dismissing the execution proposed in a different location.
The decision validated the forum of choice on the grounds that it did not make access to justice excessively onerous, nor did it concern an action of a real nature (involving property) or a matter within the jurisdiction of a specialized court, such as the Labour Court. He also pointed out that there was no imbalance in the relationship entered into by the parties when the contract was signed, assuming that they had the freedom and capacity to discuss and agree on the choice of court clause.
It is worth mentioning the Economic Freedom Law (Law No. 13,874/2019), which prioritizes the non-intervention of the Judiciary in the decisions of the contracting parties, which is why there was no reason to disregard the forum chosen in the contractual instrument.
Therefore, although it is not expected when a contract is signed that a lawsuit will have to be filed to discuss it, it is important to pay attention when choosing the competent forum, as this has been validated by the Judiciary. Accepting a forum that makes it impossible to fully defend oneself significantly damages the party’s chances in the process, making it even more costly.
Marcos Martins Advogados offers advice and consultancy in the negotiation of business contracts, always attentive to the interests of its clients and aligned with the strategies of the legal deals they enter into.
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