Justices of the Supremo Tribunal Federal confirmed during private discussions in Brasília on September 15 that an internal institutional impasse will continue without prospects for immediate conciliation. The dispute halted key initiatives led by Chief Justice Edson Fachin, including the pending judicial ethics code. Furthermore, friction over inquiries into Justice Alexandre de Moraes disrupted regular court proceedings.
The unprecedented debate regarding an investigation into Alexandre de Moraes aggravated friction across the tribunal. Tensions escalated in early September when Justice Kassio Nunes Marques blocked Justice Gilmar Mendes on his phone following a direct clash during internal deliberations. Several justices warned that additional data extracted from the device of former banker Daniel Vorcaro could intensify the friction among colleagues. These developments forced court leaders to adjust the operational schedule of the plenary sessions.
Apprehension persists inside the tribunal regarding how Kassio Nunes Marques will vote once the Banco Master matter returns to the Segunda Turma. His participation or abstention carries the power to alter the voting balance within that five-member panel.
Relations fractured across Brasília.
Justice André Mendonça conducted the financial investigation after securing initial backing from Kassio Nunes Marques and Luiz Fux. However, Kassio Nunes Marques withdrew after investigators identified mentions of his son in messages recovered from Daniel Vorcaro. Both the magistrate and his relative maintained that they engaged in no unlawful activity.
In confidential discussions, Kassio Nunes Marques stated that his recusal applied strictly to matters involving Alexandre de Moraes to prevent interference with electoral disputes. The justice also serves as president of the Tribunal Superior Eleitoral. Consequently, Kassio Nunes Marques evaluates resuming deliberations concerning Banco Master in the Segunda Turma.
The institutional conflict also froze the disciplinary framework scheduled for review following the municipal elections. Opponents of Edson Fachin organized resistance against establishing new conduct guidelines for members of the bench. These dissenting members seek to prevent additional administrative constraints over individual judicial actions. The governance package remains indefinitely stalled as a direct consequence.
The full bench convened on September 15 in an extraordinary session to evaluate findings compiled by the Federal Police regarding interactions between Daniel Vorcaro and Alexandre de Moraes. André Mendonça commissioned that specific police report during his supervision of the broader financial probe.
The document detailed extensive communications and referenced multiple public figures across Brazil. Justices refrained from voting on the substance of the underlying allegations during that hearing. Instead, procedural motions dominated the session as members contested jurisdiction and oversight.
Justices Flávio Dino and Gilmar Mendes submitted preliminary motions to merge connected files. The procedural request sought several changes to the handling of the case:
- Consolidating all petitions regarding Alexandre de Moraes and André Mendonça into a single docket.
- Holding a new distribution draw to select an impartial rapporteur for the merged proceedings.
- Providing formal procedural standing to the Procuradoria-Geral da República to evaluate the evidence.
The vote halted when Flávio Dino requested additional review time through a formal pedido de vista. Four justices had voted against three to maintain separate legal files for the review of Alexandre de Moraes and André Mendonça.
The formal review grant provides Flávio Dino up to ninety days to examine the investigative documentation. His regulatory deadline expires in December. If Flávio Dino does not submit his vote before that window lapses, the docket returns automatically to the voting calendar.
Origin of the clash involving Banco Master and Supreme Court justices
The confrontation intensified after André Mendonça lifted the judicial seal protecting Federal Police investigative findings regarding Banco Master. The tension deepened when André Mendonça removed the seal from Federal Police reports revealing fifty-two messages exchanged between Daniel Vorcaro and Alexandre de Moraes, along with records of in-person meetings and a R$ 130 million legal contract with Viviane Barci de Moraes. The disclosure of those specific transactions accelerated internal divisions inside the institution.
Alexandre de Moraes accused André Mendonça of withholding investigative files and coordinating selective disclosures of evidence. In response, André Mendonça asserted that he kept confidential only the records necessary to protect ongoing inquiries and third parties.
Following the public disclosures, Alexandre de Moraes, Cristiano Zanin, and Gilmar Mendes filed formal petitions demanding complete access to the full digital cache extracted from Daniel Vorcaro. The Federal Police fulfilled the directive issued by Cristiano Zanin and delivered the digital records to the requesting chambers on September 14. The Procuradoria-Geral da República also backed the complete sharing of the seized evidence among all members.
Edson Fachin ordered the division of the inquiries into separate procedural tracks to reduce internal friction. The plenary scheduled the assessment of the interactions between Daniel Vorcaro and Alexandre de Moraes for September 15.
The challenge against the conduct of André Mendonça remained set for September 23.