{"id":3178,"date":"2026-02-05T10:07:52","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T13:07:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oliveiraalves.com.br\/?p=3178"},"modified":"2026-02-05T14:14:43","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T17:14:43","slug":"stj-permite-que-a-fazenda-publica-requeira-a-falencia-pela-frustacao-da-cobranca-de-divida-tributaria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oliveiraalves.com.br\/en\/stj-permite-que-a-fazenda-publica-requeira-a-falencia-pela-frustacao-da-cobranca-de-divida-tributaria\/","title":{"rendered":"STJ Allows the Public Treasury to File for Bankruptcy Following the Frustration of Tax Debt Collection"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The <strong>Third Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ)<\/strong> issued a <strong>landmark decision<\/strong> recognizing the <strong>standing of the Public Treasury<\/strong> to file for the <strong>bankruptcy of a company indebted for taxes<\/strong>, provided that <strong>ordinary collection mechanisms\u2014particularly tax foreclosure proceedings\u2014have been previously exhausted<\/strong>. This is the <strong>first specific precedent<\/strong> of the Court on this matter.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Background and Departure from Prior Case Law<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Historically, the STJ held that the Public Treasury lacked <strong>procedural interest<\/strong> to file for bankruptcy, since it had its own instruments for collecting tax claims\u2014most notably <strong>tax foreclosure proceedings (execu\u00e7\u00e3o fiscal)<\/strong>\u2014in addition to the <strong>statutory priority<\/strong> granted to tax credits.<\/p>\n<p>However, the reporting justice, <strong>Justice Nancy Andrighi<\/strong>, revisited the prior understanding and emphasized that the <strong>reform of the Judicial Reorganization and Bankruptcy Law<\/strong>, enacted by <strong>Law No. 14,112\/2020<\/strong>, substantially altered this framework. According to the justice, the current legislation <strong>does not distinguish between public and private creditors<\/strong> regarding standing to file for bankruptcy, broadly referring to <strong>\u201cany creditor.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In addition, reference was made to the precedent established under the <strong>repetitive appeals procedure (Theme 1092)<\/strong>, which allowed the <strong>filing and continuation of tax claims within bankruptcy proceedings<\/strong>, thereby rejecting the alleged structural incompatibility between <strong>tax foreclosure<\/strong> and <strong>bankruptcy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Grounds for the Public Treasury\u2019s Procedural Interest<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According to the prevailing opinion, the Public Treasury\u2019s <strong>procedural interest<\/strong> arises from the <strong>frustration of tax foreclosure proceedings<\/strong>, when the typical mechanisms for asset seizure prove ineffective.<\/p>\n<p>The justice underscored that <strong>bankruptcy proceedings offer specific tools<\/strong> capable of enabling the satisfaction of public claims, such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>universal collection of assets<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>clawback actions<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>liability of shareholders and directors<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>investigation of fraudulent acts<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>establishment of the legal look-back period (termo legal)<\/strong> of bankruptcy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In this sense, bankruptcy <strong>does not replace tax foreclosure<\/strong>, but becomes a <strong>subsidiary and exceptional avenue<\/strong>, triggered only upon <strong>demonstrated ineffectiveness of traditional enforcement mechanisms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>Office of the Attorney General of the National Treasury (PGFN)<\/strong> welcomed the ruling, describing it as a <strong>relevant tool<\/strong> in combating <strong>habitual tax debtors<\/strong> and practices involving <strong>asset shielding or depletion<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>From the taxpayers\u2019 perspective, however, the decision should be viewed with caution, given the <strong>risk that bankruptcy filings may be used merely as a revenue-raising or coercive instrument<\/strong>, potentially undermining the <strong>collective nature of bankruptcy proceedings<\/strong>, which produce <strong>systemic effects<\/strong> on employees, suppliers, financial institutions, and the market as a whole.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The ruling in <strong>REsp No. 2,196,073<\/strong> represents a <strong>significant shift<\/strong> in the relationship between <strong>tax enforcement and insolvency law<\/strong>, expanding the range of tools available to the tax authorities, while conditioning their use on the <strong>proven failure of tax foreclosure proceedings<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>If this understanding becomes consolidated, the Public Treasury\u2019s actions will require <strong>greater evidentiary rigor<\/strong>, while companies will need to <strong>intensify attention to the management and regularization of tax liabilities<\/strong>, particularly in <strong>financially distressed scenarios<\/strong>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Third Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) issued a landmark decision recognizing the standing of the Public Treasury to file for the 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