A precautionary measure ruled that Ordinance 1.475 violates the concept of legal security and accepted the claim of Megapix to continue operating until the end of the year.
Brazil.- Federal Judge Itagiba Catta Preta Neto, from the 4th Court of the Federal Regional Tribunal of the 1st Region (TRF1), granted a precautionary measure in favor of an online betting company to remain operational until December 31, 2024, even without having requested authorization from the Ministry of Finance within the stipulated deadline, last month.
The company Megapix Comunicação e Tecnologia Ltda., based in Caruaru, was not included in the list of authorized betting operations in Brazil by the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA), linked to the Ministry of Finance. As a result, the platform filed a protection request to extend the regularization deadline until the end of the year.
In the request for the precautionary measure, lawyers Ariane Sabrina Batista and Marcos Bispo Alves claim a violation of the principle of legal security in the act that moved forward to October the deadline for regularizing betting houses, through Ordinance 1.475.
“It is established in jurisprudence that the Administration cannot exceed its regulatory authority by imposing sanctions, creating or reducing deadlines or other requirements that violate the principle of legal reserve,” wrote the federal judge in her ruling.
Referring to the schedule of ordinances published by the Treasury, Catta Preta Neto mentions that in May, the deadline was set as December 31 to regularize bets. “A subsequent norm, during this period, that modifies it, violates the principle of legal security. The Administration cannot modify its acts at will, without safeguarding the rights already established in favor of individuals,” stated the judge.
“Companies that were already operating began a process of adaptation to the legislation with the expectation of a deadline that would end – and ends – on December 31, 2024. This is the deadline that corresponds to the petitioner,” emphasized Catta Preta Neto and added: “Being this the case, I grant the request for a precautionary measure to determine that the petitioner be authorized to operate until December 31, 2024, in accordance with Ordinance No. 827 of May 2024”.
See also: Block on companies without an operating license: more than 2,000 betting sites will be shut down in Brazil
The creation of the list of authorized companies was not initially anticipated, but was determined in the ordinance of September 17, to exercise better control and more pressure on illegal sites. The judicialization was already expected since the ordinance was issued by both members of the sector and the government itself.
