Supreme Court Justice schedules conciliation hearing to discuss precautionary measure regarding betting and social benefits.
Justice Luiz Fux has scheduled a conciliation hearing to discuss disagreements regarding compliance with a precautionary measure in Direct Action of Unconstitutionality 7.721. The meeting will take place on March 17, 2025, at 3:00 PM, in the magistrate's office at the Supreme Federal Court in Brasília.
The decision was taken this Wednesday (16) after controversies arose between the parties involved in the process. The impasse occurred after the entry into force of Ordinance SPA/MF No. 2.217/2025 and Normative Instructions SPA/MF No. 22/2025 and 24/2025, which generated different interpretations on how to implement the precautionary measure partially granted on November 13, 2024.
Four entities have been summoned to participate in the in-person hearing. The National Confederation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC), the original plaintiff in the action, will be present at the discussions. The Brazilian Association for Economic Freedom (ABLE), which requested the new precautionary measure, will also participate in the meeting.
The Union and the Ministry of Finance complete the list of participants, along with the Attorney General's Office. The information provided by ABLE, the Attorney General, and the Union highlighted the disagreements that motivated the convening of the hearing.
The meeting will specifically address the controversies related to the implementation of the precautionary measure, which was ratified by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) on November 18, 2024. The hearing seeks a consensual solution to the legal impasse established after the publication of the regulations by the Ministry of Finance.
Allegation of excessive regulation.
On December 1st, ABLE submitted a statement to the Supreme Federal Court (STF) denouncing that the new regulations from the Ministry of Finance regarding betting were unduly affecting people without social benefits. The document was addressed to Minister Luiz Fux, who is also the rapporteur for ADI 7.723/DF, in addition to the aforementioned ADI 7.721/DF.
According to the association, the implemented restrictions affect not only direct beneficiaries of social programs, but also their dependent family members registered in official databases. The organization presented documents that, it claims, prove that the limitations are impacting people who do not receive any social benefits but are listed as dependents in government registries.
On November 10th, ABLE had already filed an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Federal Court (STF) in the same Direct Actions of Unconstitutionality (ADIs), highlighting the urgency of the matter given the imminent deadline set by Normative Instruction SPA/MF No. 24/2025, which established December 1, 2025 as the deadline for betting operators to implement blocking mechanisms.
Context of the preliminary injunction decision
It is important to contextualize that, in a monocratic decision published on November 13th, Minister Luiz Fux granted a partial injunction in ADIs 7721 (proposed by CNC) and 7723 (proposed by the Solidarity Party). The decision determined the immediate application of measures that prevent participation in fixed-odds betting with resources originating from social and welfare programs such as Bolsa Família, the Continuous Benefit Payment, and similar programs, until the conclusion of the merit judgment of the aforementioned actions.
In its recent statement, ABLE requests that the Supreme Court recognize the "undue excess implemented in complying with the preliminary injunction" and order the Union to adopt immediate measures to comply with the decision within its strict limits: preventing the use of social program funds for fixed-odds betting without, however, excluding the beneficiary from the regulated environment.
The president of ABLE, Luciano Benetti Timm, signed the statement. The Administrative Ombudsman's Office of the Supreme Federal Court has not yet commented on the allegations presented by the association.
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Direct Action of Unconstitutionality 7.721 Federal District
DECISION: Considering the entry into force of Ordinance SPA/MF No. 2.217/2025 and Normative Instructions SPA/MF No. 22/2025 and 24/2025, as well as the information provided by the Brazilian Association for Economic Freedom – ABLE (doc. 356 and doc. 362), the Attorney General of the Republic (doc. 373) and the Union (doc. 375), a controversy arose in the proceedings regarding the manner of compliance with the precautionary measure partially granted on 11/13/2024 and ratified by the Plenary on 11/18/2014.
In this context, I schedule a conciliation hearing for March 17, 2026, at 3:15 PM, to be held in person in my office at the Supreme Federal Court, to specifically address this controversial point, and only the following entities should participate:
a) National Confederation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism – CNC (plaintiff in the action); b) the Brazilian Association for Economic Freedom – ABLE (plaintiff in the new precautionary measure); c) the Union and the Ministry of Finance; d) the Attorney General's Office.
Publish yourself.
Brasília, December 16, 2025.
Minister Luiz Fux
Relator
