Brazil's Case Against Private-Sponsored Events for Judges: A Not-Yet-Perfect Attempt at Fighting Institutional Corruption

The paper first reviews some definitions of institutional corruption. Then, it argues that there might be an example of institutional corruption based on the Brazilian legal practice: that of private sponsoring of seminars and professional events aimed at judges. This practice has been recently restricted by a regulation which limits private sponsorship to thirty percent of all expenses. The paper suggests that, legal technicalities aside, restricting private sponsoring to thirty percent of expenses might legitimize the practice, and that, given professional characteristics of judges, a complete ban on private sponsoring would be desirable.