Labor reform only applies to new contract, says TST

Labor reform only applies to new contract, says TST For the court, most of the procedural changes provided for in the new legislation do not apply to cases initiated before November 11 of last year The plenary of the Higher Labor Court (TST) approved the opinion produced by a committee of ministers that provides that the procedural norms foreseen in the labor reform do not reach “previous situations initiated or consolidated under the aegis of the repealed law.” That is, for the full court, the procedures provided for by the reform are valid only for new contracts signed after November 11, 2017.

On the so-called “substantive law” – which is the application of rules in the labor market – the approved proposal provides that jurisprudence should be built from concrete cases. The approved proposal cites that most of the procedural changes provided for in the reform does not apply to cases initiated before 11 November last year when the change came into effect.

Among the changes mentioned, there are those that foresee responsibility for procedural damages and reveal a fine for litigation in bad faith and for false testimony. The same understanding is used for the condemnation to the payment of sucumbencial legal fees that, with the approval, become valid only to the actions proposed after November 11, 2017. With the decision taken, it becomes valid the normative instruction proposed by the ministers.

The document is used as a reference by other instances of the Labor Court, but has no binding power – that is, other instances do not need to follow that understanding. Regarding the substantive law – rules of the labor relationship between employee and employer -, the TST instruction makes no mention and the ministers suggest that jurisprudence is created in the Justice from concrete cases analyzed under the new law. Rebelo Gloger Advogados Associados

Source: information contained in this post was disclosed by Veja Brasil