Dimensões do ativismo judicial no Supremo Tribunal Federal

Abstract

Considering that judicial activism is a contemporary reality of the Federal Supreme Tribunal´s decision-making, how better explain its recent rising and, foremost, how identify the Court´s activist decisions? This research is dedicated to investigate the Federal Supreme Tribunal´s judicial activism so as to make possible answer those questions. Here shall be examined the activist practices of important constitutional courts or supreme courts, chiefly the American one, with the purpose of obtaining lessons towards the elaboration of an inclusive definition of judicial activism and towards the making of a framework to explain and categorize the activist decisions. The conclusions are a multifaceted explanation and a multidimensional identification of judicial activism. Applying these premises on the Supremo s decision-making reality, it is verified its judicial activism reacts to a group of institutional, social-political and legal-cultural factors that have advanced gradually since the Constitution of 1988. And, principally, it´s possible describe five dimensions of its judicial activism: methodological (interpretative); procedural; structural (horizontal); on rights; anti-dialogic.