Criminal Law
Criminal Law and defense in criminal proceedings
A police report, a summons to give a statement, or charges accepted by the court place each person involved in a different position. MSC Advocacia works on emergency protective orders, police investigations (inquérito policial), and defense in criminal proceedings.
Police investigations and criminal proceedings have their own procedures and safeguards.
Criminal matters rarely arise at a calm moment. They usually begin with a police report, a summons to give a statement, or the acceptance of charges — and from then on, each person involved occupies a specific position: the one who reports the facts, the one under investigation, the one heard as a witness, the one who is a defendant in the proceedings. Domestic violence, threats, and offenses against honor receive specific treatment under Brazilian law, with their own rules on evidence, deadlines, and jurisdiction.
Listening to the account comes first; then, a review of what already exists: police reports, forensic reports, messages, and documents from the police investigation (inquérito policial). That review produces the applicable legal picture, the steps available at the police or court level, and follow-up on hearings and investigative measures. None of this is resolved by a ready-made formula: the facts reported and the documents available are what define the next step. Assistance is confidential and individualized, and takes into account the interests of the person seeking it — someone reporting a crime and someone under investigation do not have the same needs.
Situations handled in criminal matters.
Emergency protective orders
Requesting, maintaining, or reviewing a protective order starts from the facts reported and the documents already available. The stage of the case and the urgency shown determine what can be requested.
Monitoring of police investigations
During the investigative stage, the work covers the contents of the case file, the access granted to the defense, and the relevance of requests and investigative measures, with follow-up on the steps taken by the police authority.
Defense in criminal proceedings
Once the prosecutor’s charges or the private criminal complaint are accepted, the case proceeds under its own procedure, with defined acts and deadlines. Representation covers the filings available at each stage and participation in scheduled hearings.
Defamation-related offenses and threats
False accusation of a crime (calúnia), defamation (difamação), insult (injúria), and threats depend on the context in which the events took place, the content of the communications exchanged, and how that content was recorded. Together, these elements indicate the available routes in each situation.
Guidance for victims and persons under investigation
In a private setting, the consultation clarifies each person’s role in the proceedings, the documents that can already be gathered, and the possible next steps at the police and court levels.
Frequently asked questions about Criminal Law.
The request can be made at the police station, to the Public Prosecutor’s Office (Ministério Público), or directly in court. The account, the existing records, and the relationship between the parties indicate which of these routes is appropriate. In situations of domestic and family violence against women, the measures provided for in the Maria da Penha Law (Brazil’s domestic violence law) apply; outside those situations, the precautionary measures permitted by criminal procedure law are examined.
The summons usually indicates the authority in charge and, when the document states it, the capacity in which the person is being called: witness, victim, or person under investigation. Reading the summons and identifying the subject of the investigation before giving the statement matters, because the rights and duties of the person giving the statement change according to that capacity. Being accompanied by a lawyer is possible, and the guidance is defined based on what is in the case file.
Yes. What is said during the consultation is protected by the professional confidentiality set out in Brazil’s Statute of the Legal Profession (Estatuto da Advocacia) and Code of Ethics, a duty that remains even if the case does not move forward. Assistance is individualized, and meetings are scheduled according to the parties’ availability.
Need defense or guidance in a criminal matter?
Assistance is confidential. Just indicate what stage the situation is at — police report, police investigation, or criminal proceedings — and what position you are in.