TITLE:
The State of Exception in the Brazilian Constitutional Experience
AUTHORS:
Arnaldo Sampaio de Moraes Godoy, Gustavo Ribeiro
KEYWORDS:
State of Exception, State of Emergency, Brazilian Constitutional History, Sovereign Unaccountability, Suspension of Law
JOURNAL NAME:
Beijing Law Review,
Vol.15 No.4,
December
12,
2024
ABSTRACT: This essay examines Brazilian constitutional history regarding the various attempts to regulate the state of exception. It explores the different models of exceptionality in constitutional texts and legislation. Drawing from the conceptual frameworks of Giorgio Agamben and Carl Schmitt, the article posits that the various attempts to regulate the state of exception reveal a political, not a legal concept. The essay employs, as methodology, a historical-comparative approach, analyzing constitutional and related legal texts concerning the state of exception across different periods of Brazilian history (from the 1824 to the 1988 Constitution). By confirming its hypotheses, the article adds a nuanced understanding of the historical relationship between law, power, and democracy in Brazil.