Brazilian Federal Supreme Court establishes the definitive thesis on the civil liability of digital platforms

Brazilian Federal Supreme Court establishes the definitive thesis on the civil liability of digital platforms

On June 17, 2026, the Plenary of the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court (STF) concluded the judgment of the motion for clarification in REsp 1,037,396 and established the definitive thesis of Themes 987 and 533 of general repercussion, which address the civil liability of digital platforms for content published by their users. Reported by Justices Dias Toffoli and Luiz Fux, RE 1037396 and RE 1057258, respectively, consolidated the rules that will apply until Congress enacts new legislation on the matter.

The judgment originated from two appeals. In Theme 987, reported by Justice Dias Toffoli, the matter under discussion was the constitutionality of Article 19 of the Marco Civil da Internet (Law No. 12,965/2014), a provision that, in its original wording, only allowed a platform to be held liable if it failed to comply with a court order to remove content. The specific case involved a fake profile on a social network, and the company’s conviction was upheld. In Theme 533, reported by Justice Luiz Fux, the matter under discussion was the platform’s duty to remove offensive content regardless of a court decision; the case concerned an offensive community on another digital platform, and the provider’s conviction was ultimately set aside. From the joint analysis, the STF recognized the partial unconstitutionality of Article 19, on the understanding that the rule left fundamental rights and democracy itself unprotected in serious situations.

Once the unconstitutionality was defined, the motion for clarification detailed how the platform’s liability varies according to the seriousness of the content. As a general rule, the platform becomes jointly liable for damages if it fails to remove unlawful third-party content, except where there is reasonable doubt as to its unlawfulness, assessed with due diligence. The same logic applies to reported fake accounts and to the repetition of content already recognized as offensive by the courts, which must be removed by all social networks upon simple notification, without a new court decision. However, in the case of crimes against honor, the requirement of a court order to hold the platform liable remains, although nothing prevents it from removing the content following an extrajudicial notification.

The thesis also addresses a rebuttable presumption of fault on the part of the platform when the unlawful content results from paid ads and boosting or from artificial dissemination mechanisms. In these situations, liability does not depend on notification, and the platform is released from liability if it proves that it acted diligently and within a reasonable time to make the content unavailable.

The platform is also liable when it fails to promote the immediate removal of content that constitutes especially serious crimes, such as antidemocratic acts, terrorism, incitement to suicide, racism and other forms of discrimination, crimes against women, child pornography, and human trafficking. In this case, liability presupposes a systemic failure, understood as the absence of adequate prevention and removal measures according to the state of the art. The isolated existence of a single piece of unlawful content does not, in itself, render the platform liable.

The decision also imposed structural duties on platforms. They must adopt self-regulation with a notification system and due process guarantees, publish annual transparency reports, and offer service channels accessible to users and non-users. Platforms operating in Brazil are further required to maintain headquarters and a legal representative in the country, with powers to respond in the administrative and judicial spheres and to comply with court orders.

Finally, the decision has ex nunc effect, as of the publication of the minutes of the merit judgment, on August 5, 2025, with decisions that have already become final and unappealable preserved. Platforms will have a 60-day deadline, counted from the publication of the minutes of the motion for clarification, to implement the structural obligations.

The full text of the thesis established by STF can be accessed through the link: Thesis STF.

Note: For quick release, this English version is provided by automated translation without human review.