MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

X complies with De Moraes' requirements and asks to be reinstated in Brazil

De Moraes has no deadline to make a ruling

Tycoon Elon Musk's social media platform X has submitted all the necessary paperwork before Brazil's Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre De Moraes to have its services reinstated in South America's largest country after being suspended last month for failing to comply with the magistrate's orders. De Moraes' decision to suspend X nationwide was later upheld unanimously by the STF's First Panel.

“X has adopted all the measures indicated by Your Excellency as necessary to re-establish the operation of the platform in Brazil,” the company's representatives said Thursday. Signing the documents on behalf of X were lawyers Fabiano Robalinho Cavalcanti, Caetano Berenguer, André Zonaro Giacchetta, Daniela Seadi Kessler, and Sérgio Rosenthal.

Last weekend, De Moraes asked X for additional data on the company's registration status in Brazil, the validity of the appointment of lawyer Rachel Villa Nova Conceição as the firm's legal representative in the country, and the effective compliance with court rulings, including the suppression of accounts that posted anti-democratic and criminal content.

After Thursday's presentation, De Moraes will now have to make a decision but there is no deadline for it, it was also explained. The judge must now also rule on the daily R$ 5 million (around US$ 900,000) fine imposed on X for an alleged attempt to circumvent the blockade last week. The amount to be paid has yet to be determined.

The Federal Police informed the STF that they have already begun investigating which users continued to publish on X even during the suspension to keep publishing hate speech and fake news which might impact the upcoming mayoral elections.

In a separate development, STF Justice Luiz Fux Thursday called for a hearing scheduled for Nov. 11 to discuss the National Confederation of Trade in Goods, Services, and Tourism's (CNC) petition to repeal the so-called Bets Law passed by Congress last year.

“Given the complexity and interdisciplinary nature of the issue, which involves neuroscience, economic and social aspects, it is considered valuable and necessary to hold a public hearing in this direct action, so that this Court can be provided with information that is essential to the outcome of the case,” Fux wrote while summoning Central Bank (BCB) President Roberto Campos Neto, Speakers Rodrigo Pacheco (Senate) and Arthur Lira (Lower House), as well as Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, among other officials to the hearing.

The CNC asked for the immediate suspension of the law on the grounds that “it is causing serious social and economic impacts” but Fux refused to issue an injunction and referred the case to the plenary for judgment on the functioning of online casinos nationwide.

“The unbridled spread of online gambling is creating a cycle of dependency, especially among the most vulnerable, which has led to a reduction in the consumption of essential goods and directly affected commerce,” the CNC also argued.