New Civil Code is a bomb against family and may be approved in a hurry in the Senate
Pacheco's Civil Code project, which redefines the concept of family, may gain accelerated processing with the help of Davi Alcolumbre.
TL;DR
- The new Civil Code project in Brazil may be fast-tracked for a Senate vote in 2026, potentially altering marriage, filiation, and inheritance laws.
- Concerns exist about the opaque revision process, with key changes being made behind closed doors.
- Controversial points include 'express divorce' in notary offices, legalization of surrogacy ('barriga de aluguel'), obstacles to identifying biological parents from assisted reproduction, marriage without witnesses, inheritance for lovers, and reduced protection for widows.
- The project redefines marriage and family relationships, with imprecise wording potentially leading to prolonged legal disputes.
- The proposal, PL 4/2025, was presented by Rodrigo Pacheco and originated from a jurist commission chaired by Justice Luis Felipe Salomão.
- Specific 'bombs' against the family include: rapid divorce without prior resolution of financial and custody matters, risks of exploitation and disputes in surrogacy, difficulties for children to know their biological fathers, weakened fraud prevention in marriage, allowing inheritance for lovers, reduced protection for surviving spouses, and expanded grounds for disinheritance like 'affective abandonment'.
- Despite the Senate commission's deadline extended to December 22, 2026, a vote could occur earlier, potentially before the congressional renewal in 2027.
- There's a possibility the text will be simplified, focusing on consensus points, but uncertainty remains regarding family law changes.
- The lack of a consolidated version makes it impossible to know what will be put to a vote.