The 4th Panel of the STJ ruled that it is possible to seize a parking space, as long as the auction is limited to the condominium owners. The decision was made in Special Appeal No. 2.095.402/SC (2023/0321657-1).
Justice Antonio Carlos Ferreira, Rapporteur of the case, analyzed the prohibition laid down in paragraph 1 of article 1.331 of the Civil Code, regarding the sale of parking spaces to people outside the condominium. He also considered Precedent 449 of the STJ, which allows the seizure of a parking space with independent registration, and stressed that the auction sale should be restricted to the condominium owners.
This was because the case in question discussed the possibility of judicial sale of a parking space, i.e. transferring ownership of the space to someone other than the condominium, even though the condominium agreement expressly forbade this possibility.
In this context, the Rapporteur understood that the parking space can be defined as an autonomous unit only in cases where it can be registered as an independent unit in the real estate registry. Therefore, it will be characterized as an accessory right, linked to an apartment for the exclusive use of the condominium owner.
As for the autonomous unit, the Justice held that it is permissible to seize a parking space, which is accessory to a property that is considered a family asset, under the terms of Precedent 449 of the STJ: “A parking space that has its own registration in the real estate registry does not constitute a family asset for the purposes of seizure”.
In this sense, the 4th Panel of the STJ aligned itself with the understanding established by the 2nd and 3rd Panels, according to which the prohibition on the sale of a parking space to third parties who are not members of the condominium, provided for in paragraph 1 of article 1,331 of the Civil Code, prevails even in the case of judicial sale at public auction.
Thus, the Rapporteur partially granted Special Appeal No. 2.095.402/SC (2023/0321657-1), allowing the attachment of the parking space, but restricting the auction to condominium owners only.
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