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April 2008
Number: XXV

In last month’s edition, we reported on the attractiveness in terms of business opportunities and investments of the States of Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte, commenting on the fiscal benefits and lines of funding available in these locations. To follow up this information on incentives for investing in the Northeast region of Brazil, this edition contains material written by our partner Daniela Braga on the PRODEPE development program that offers credit from the ICMS tax for industry, distribution centers and port companies that wish to invest in the State of Pernambuco.
This issue also reports on the new decree benefiting the pharmaceutical industry which reduces to zero PIS and COFINS taxes on revenue and the import of certain products.

News from the Higher Court of Justice, which has just started to charge legal fees and to adopt the Electronic Court Diary as its single communications channel, includes the recent ruling that inclusion in the credit restriction register is no grounds for a suit for moral damages, if the debtor has already been on this register.


LABOUR LAW An appeal is valid if the guide contains at least the name of the parties The Section on Private Bargaining (SDI/1) of the Higher Court of Labor, in a ruling on E-RR-544658/1999.9, announced by Justice Aloysio Corrêa Veiga, ruled that the absence of any part, with the exception of the identities of the parties involved, on the bank deposit guide does not constitute grounds for determining the validity of an appeal to the Labor Court. In the ruling, Justice Veiga argues that the existence of identification of the parties involved is sufficient to validate an appeal, as laid out in Norm n° 18, of the Higher Court of Labor, which deals with requirements for proof of lodging of appeal.		ABRIDGEMENTS The Special Court of the Higher Court of Justice has reviewed the contents of Abridgement nº 332, which now contains the following statement: “A guaranty provided without authorization of one of the spouses is grounds for total invalidation of the warranty”

CIVIL LAW Re-inclusion in the SPC does not constitute grounds for a suit for moral damages The Higher Court of Justice has upheld the ruling of the District Court of Justice of the State of Rio Grande do Sul to the effect that the obligation to provide compensation does not derive from the mere commission of an unlawful act on the part of the defending party. It is necessary to ascertain on a case-by-case basis whether actual damages have been incurred. The State Court ruled in a particular case that wrongful inclusion of a consumer on the register of bad debtors cannot be claimed to have caused pain, embarrassment, suffering or humiliation if the individual concerned had already been included on the register. (Resp nº 997.456-RS).		PROCEDURAL LAW The legal costs of lodging claims at the Higher Court of Justice Resolution n° 01/2008, amending Law No. 11,636/07, which determines the fees to be charged in 26 types of suits that come under the jurisdiction of the STJ. The table of costs can be consulted at the Higher Court of Justice’s website(www.stj.gov.br).

Electronic Court Diary to be the only official channel of communication of the STJ As of 3.3.2008, the STJ has come to adopt the Electronic Court Diary (DJE) as the only official channel for publication of the judicial and administrative acts of this organ. The DJE will be published on the STJ’s website at 7pm every weekday.		An asset held in pledge prior to a firm being declared bankrupt may not be included bankruptcy estate If the pledge occurs prior to the company being declared bankrupt, the asset may not be included in the bankruptcy estate and the execution thereof will be carried out at the Labor Court. Thus was the ruling of the 7th Circuit of the Regional Labor Court of the State of Minas Gerais in granting the appeal lodged by various plaintiffs against the bankruptcy estate of a firm producing dairy products. (AP nº 00907-2005-048-03-00-5).

Lawyers may claim fees before sentence is passed In accordance with the ruling of the STJ, the fact that the sentence is now a part of the lawsuit does not constitute any impediment to the ordering of payment of legal costs. Furthermore, the fees established during the cognitive phase take into consideration only the work carried out by the lawyer on the case up to that point in time, thereby providing grounds for the charging of lawyers’ fees subsequent to a verdict or ruling having been handed down. (Resp nº 978.545-MG).		TAX LAW The Federal Court must rule against employer who does not take note of the CTPS The Federal Court should take action against and bring to trial any employer who does not duly fill in employees’ Employment and Social Security Booklets (CTPS). According to the Third Circuit of the STJ, which ruled on the conflict of jurisdiction No. 58443, the ruling being announced by Justice Laurita Vaz, the principal victim of this criminal act is the state, in the form of the Social Security Department, and, secondarily, the individual who has been deprived of the benefit of having his or her work registered in the CTPS. This is a matter for the Federal Court, under the terms of article 109, item IV, of the Federal Constitution.

This month, the article “ PRODEPE: the tax incentive programme driving the economy of Pernambuco forward” , by our partner, Daniela Braga Guimarães, can be read on our website: www.trigueirofontes.com.br .

12th Northeast International Business Meeting
As the Northeast Region is experiencing economic growth above the national average, in March, SEBRAE held the 12th Northeast International Business Meeting, with a view to expanding business opportunities in various sectors of the economy. The event was attended by Karyna Gaya (KSL), a partner of Trigueiro Fontes Advogados, and by the lawyers Fernanda Cabral (NAN) and Manoel Duarte (MDP), all from the Regional Branch in Fortaleza, in the State of Ceará.

International Publication on Arbitration
Luiz Gustavo Meira Moser (GUT), a member of staff from our Regional Branch in Porto Alegre, in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, has had his article, "Arbitration Clause and Acceptance: a Brazilian Experience" published in the Vindobona Journal of International Commercial Law and Arbitration, v.11, 2007. In this article, Gustavo deals with the arbitration clause and the possibility of remaining silent with regard to how the clause may be interpreted as having been accepted by either of the parties.

Launch of book on Tax Law in Fortaleza, in the State of Ceará
Fernanda Cabral (NAN), from our office in Fortaleza, in the State of Ceará, has had two articles published in the book "A Course in Tax Law ", edited by the Tax Studies Commission of the Organisation of Brazilian Lawyers (OAB)’s Ceará branch. The book was launched in March and its preface is written by Hugo de Brito Machado.

Director for Legal Affairs of Akzo Nobel in Recife
Dr. Christian Cardoso, Director for Legal Affairs of Akzo Nobel, gave a talk on the environment at the American Chamber of Commerce in Recife in the State of Pernambuco, on the invitation of our partners, Roberto Trigueiro Fontes (RTF) and Juliana Rocha (JOL), vice-president of the legislation committee.

More published articles
Our partner, Fábio de Possídio Egashira (POS), a specialist in civil law, has published an article entitled "Social Function and the Sources of Legislation" on the website of Análise Editorial. Another partner, Ana Carolina F. de Melo Brito (ANA), has published an article entitled "Responsibility for Information on the Social Balance " in the newsletter of the Union of Vehicle Distributors and Concession-Holders of the State of São Paulo (Sincodiv-SP). Both articles may be consulted on the Trigueiro Fontes website.

Energy and Climate Change Our partner, Ana Carolina Brito (ANA), a specialist in civil and environmental law, represented the Pernambuco branch of the Organization of Brazilian Lawyers at a debate held at the British Council in Recife, Pernambuco, at which groups from three countries (Brazil, the UK, and Russia) discussed issues relating to energy and climate change.

EDITORIAL BOARD composed of members Vanessa Arruda, Antônio Carlos Acioli and Luiz Gustavo Meira Moser, coordinated by partner Ana Carolina Brito.

The information disclosed herein does not necessarily represent the Firm's opinion. Disclosure limited to the Firm's Client's or persons connected thereto. Disclosure authorized subject to indication or origin.

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