Brazilian Senate contests lawsuit by Justice Moraes' family against senator

Brazil's Senate legal team has challenged a defamation lawsuit initiated by the family of Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes against Senator Alessandro Vieira. The family seeks 20,000 Brazilian reais (approximately $3,700 USD) each in damages from Vieira over statements made in a March interview.

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There is circulation of funds between this criminal group and family members of ministers Dias Toffoli and Alexandre de Moraes.

In the interview, Vieira allegedly suggested a flow of funds between individuals connected to the Banco Master and the families of Justices Dias Toffoli and Alexandre de Moraes. Documents from Brazil's Federal Revenue Service reportedly indicate that a company owned by Daniel Vorcaro paid 80.2 million reais (approximately $15 million USD) over two years to Viviane Moraes's law firm. Viviane Barci de Moraes is the wife of Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

The Senate's defense argues that the lawsuit relies on selective excerpts that distort the senator's remarks. They contend that Vieira made immediate clarifications and that his comments were made in good faith, without asserting guilt or criminality. The defense also points out that the senator never named the justice's family members, including his wife and children, in his statements.

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It is not reasonable to say now that this circulation of funds is illicit. Morally speaking, it is absolutely reprehensible. Legally speaking, we will have more steps to ascertain.

Furthermore, the Senate's legal team asserts that Vieira's remarks were contextualized within an ongoing investigation by a congressional committee into fund transfers via Banco Master. They argue that parliamentary immunity protects such statements, whether made inside or outside Congress. The defense also seeks to move the case from São Paulo to Brasília, where the interview was given. The Moraes family has 15 days to respond to the Senate's challenge.

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In no moment did the senator name the plaintiffs, or even the minister's 'spouse' and 'children'. The senator contextualized his speech in the CPI investigation on fund transfers, which passed through Banco Master via Reag, presenting his personal considerations on the matter, as well as the need for investigation of the facts with the installation of a new CPI (of Banco Master).