Although this case does not refer to internet intermediaries, the final decision will serve as an important background to understand the current debate on a “right to be forgotten” in Brazil.
In this case (named Candelaria Case – Recurso Especial Nº 1.334.097-RJ), a man who was wrongly sentenced jail time (and later acquitted) based on accusations that he participated in a crime (the killing of eight homeless children and young men who lived near Candelaria Church in Rio de Janeiro downtown) sued the publisher of content (TV Globo) for damages. The rapporteur of the case explicitly affirms that his analysis is restricted to the publication of news at the television, and places the passage of time and the newsworthiness of the reporting at the core of the legal controversy. In the decision, the Court found that the documentary made by the TV company could have described the facts without mentioning the name of the plaintiff, upholding the decision from Rio de Janeiro State Court who condemned TV Globo to pay damages to the plaintiff.
The defendant appealed against this decision to the Supreme Court.