Attorneys specializing in criminal law assess/explain the lawsuit filed by DIS/FAAP against Neymar Jr., his parents, and NN Consultoria
From October 17 to 30, the trial regarding the criminal charge of “Corruption Among Private Individuals”—brought by the companies DIS and FAAP (Federation of Professional Athletes’ Associations)—against Neymar Jr., Neymar da Silva Santos, Nadine Gonçalves, and NN Consultoria, as well as the soccer clubs Santos FC and FC Barcelona. In light of this development, NR Sports and NN Consultoria invited three attorneys specializing in criminal law at the national and international levels to clarify the facts of the charges.
Prior to this trial, DIS and FAAP had already filed lawsuits in Brazil, but here, this type of complaint or crime does not exist. They have already lost two cases: the first in Madrid, precisely because Spanish law lacked jurisdiction in this matter, and then in the sports arena at FIFA and the CAS. In the coming weeks, an appeal in this same case will take place, which will likely meet the same fate.
These experts explain what the charge of “Corruption Between Private Individuals” entails. One of the experts invited to speak about the case, João Gameiro—a lawyer with a master’s degree in criminal law from USP—points out that in Brazil, the crime of “Private Corruption” or “Corruption Between Private Individuals” does not exist; therefore, they are not considered crimes in Brazil, since the charge relates to an incident that occurred on Brazilian soil in 2013.
“In Brazil, the crime of ‘private corruption’ or ‘corruption between private individuals’ does not exist. Such conduct is not considered a crime in Brazil. Therefore, neither Neymar Jr. nor his family members could ever be prosecuted in Brazil on the basis of this charge, which has been brought in Spain,” he states.
Speaking about the crime within Spanish territory—the country where the case will be tried—Carlos Gómez-Jara Diez, an attorney and professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid, explained that the “Crime Between Private Individuals” law was passed in Spain in 2014, one year after soccer player Neymar Jr.’s transfer to FC Barcelona, and that, even so, it does not constitute a crime, since Spanish law holds that the offense applies only to the two entities involved in the dispute between private parties—that is, the private companies involved in the case.
“The requirement that a conduct be a crime in two countries in order to be punished is what we call the ‘Principle of Dual Criminality’—that is, that the acts committed in Brazil and Spain be considered crimes. In 2014, the crime of private corruption was added to Spain’s list of criminal offenses. In other words, for acts committed before 2014, there is no ‘universal jurisdiction,’ whereas for acts committed after 2014, ‘universal jurisdiction’ applies. In short, we believe this is a matter of great interest to the Brazilian public regarding crimes subject to “universal jurisdiction,” and, specifically regarding the crime of private corruption, Brazilian citizens are not subject to this “universal jurisdiction” for private corruption in cases where the crimes were committed entirely within Brazil.”
According to criminal defense attorney and FGV professor Davi Tangerino, the key factor in this trial is that the crime must be punishable in Brazil. This is precisely what is missing in the case involving Neymar Jr. The crime of private corruption simply does not exist in Brazil, and in Spain, it was only enacted in 2014.
“Brazil does not criminalize corruption between private individuals. It is not possible to apply Brazilian law to a Spanish case because there is no Brazilian law criminalizing private corruption, and although the crime of private corruption exists in Spain, since we do not have an identical provision in Brazil, it is impossible to apply it within Brazilian territory,” he concludes.
Spanish/Español
Attorneys specializing in criminal law evaluate/explain the lawsuit filed by DIS/FAAP against Neymar Jr., his parents, and NN Consultoria
From October 17 to 30, a trial is taking place in the city of Barcelona, Spain, regarding the criminal charge of “Corruption Between Private Individuals” brought by the company DIS and FAAP (Federation of Professional Athletes’ Associations) against Neymar Jr., Neymar da Silva Santos, Nadine Gonçalves, and NN Consultoria, as well as the soccer teams Santos FC and FC Barcelona. In light of these events, NR Sports and NN Consultoria invited three attorneys specializing in criminal law at the Brazilian and international levels to clarify the facts of the charges.
Prior to this trial, DIS and FAAP had already filed lawsuits in Brazil, but that type of complaint or offense does not exist here. They have already lost two cases: the first in Madrid, specifically because Spanish law lacked jurisdiction over this case, and then in the sports arena at FIFA and the CAS. In the coming weeks, the appeal in this same case will take place.
These experts explain what the charge of “Corruption Between Private Parties” entails. One of the specialists invited to comment on the case, João Gameiro—a lawyer with a master’s degree in criminal law from USP—points out that, in Brazil, the crime of “private corruption” or “corruption between private individuals” does not exist. Therefore, these actions are not considered crimes in Brazil, since the charge refers to an incident that took place on Brazilian territory in 2013.
“In Brazil, the crime of ‘private corruption’ or ‘corruption between private individuals’ does not exist. This conduct is not considered a crime in Brazil. Therefore, neither Neymar Jr. nor his family could be prosecuted in Brazil on this charge, as is the case in Spain,” he says.
Commenting on the crime within Spanish territory—the country where the case will be tried—Carlos Gómez-Jara Diez, an attorney and professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid, explained that the law on “Corruption Between Private Individuals” was enacted in Spain in 2014, one year after Neymar Jr.’s transfer to FC Barcelona, and that, even so, it does not constitute a crime, since Spanish law stipulates that the act must be considered a crime in both jurisdictions where the parties involved operate—that is, the private companies involved in this case.
“The requirement that a conduct must be a crime in two countries in order to be punishable is what we call the ‘principle of dual criminality.’ In 2014, the crime of private corruption was added to the list of such crimes in Spain. In other words: for acts committed before 2014, there is no ‘universal jurisdiction’; for acts committed after 2014, there is ‘universal jurisdiction.’ In short—and we understand that this is something that may be of great interest to the Brazilian public—with regard to crimes subject to “universal jurisdiction,” and, specifically, regarding the crime of private corruption, Brazilian citizens are not subject to that “universal jurisdiction” for private corruption for crimes committed entirely in Brazil.”
According to criminal defense attorney and FGV professor Davi Tangerino, the most interesting aspect of this trial is that the crime must be punishable in Brazil. This is the key element missing from the case involving Neymar Jr. The crime of private corruption simply does not exist in Brazil, and in Spain it was only enacted in 2014.
“Brazil does not criminalize corruption between private individuals. Brazilian law cannot be applied to a Spanish case because there is no Brazilian law that criminalizes private corruption, and even though the crime of private corruption exists in Spain, since there is no identical provision in Brazil, it cannot be applied on Brazilian territory,” he adds.
English/English
Criminal defense attorneys evaluate and explain the lawsuit filed by DIS and FAAP against Neymar Jr., his parents, and NN Consultoria
From 17th through 30th In October, in Barcelona, Spain, a trial will be held on the criminal charge of “Corruption between Individuals” filed by the company DIS and FAAP (Federation of Professional Athlete Associations) against Neymar Jr., Neymar da Silva Santos, Nadine Gonçalves, and NN Consultoria, as well as the soccer teams Santos FC and FC Barcelona. In light of this, NR Sports and NN Consultoria invited three lawyers who are experts in criminal law at the Brazilian and international levels to clarify the charges.
Prior to the trial, DIS and FAAP had already filed lawsuits in Brazil, but here, this type of complaint or crime does not exist. They have already lost two cases: the first in Madrid, due to the very lack of provisions in Spanish law regarding this matter, and later in the sports division of FIFA, at TAS/CAS. The appeal in this case is scheduled to take place over the next few weeks.
The experts explain what a “crime of corruption between individuals” is. One of the specialists invited to discuss the case—João Gameiro, an attorney with a master’s degree in criminal law from USP—points out that, in Brazil, the crime of “private corruption” or “corruption between individuals” does not exist. The conduct is not considered a crime in this country, and the charge relates to an incident that took place on Brazilian territory in 2013.
“In Brazil, the crime of ‘private corruption’ or ‘corruption between individuals’ does not exist. This conduct is not classified as a crime in Brazil. Neymar Jr. and his family could never be prosecuted in Brazil on this charge, as is the case in Spain,” he says.
Regarding the crime committed on Spanish territory, where the trial will take place, Carlos Gómez-Jara Diez—a lawyer and PhD professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid—explained that the criminal law on “Corruption between Individuals” was enacted in Spain in 2014, one year after Neymar Jr.’s transfer to FC Barcelona. He states that despite this fact, it is still not a crime, as Spanish law provides that it shall be deemed a crime in both jurisdictions where the involved parties—that is, the private companies in question—operate.
“The requirement that the conduct be considered a crime in both countries in order to be punishable is known as the ‘Principle of Double Jeopardy.’ In other words, the acts that took place in Brazil and Spain must be classified as crimes. In 2014, private corruption was added to the Spanish list of crimes. Therefore, for acts committed before 2014, there is no ‘universal jurisdiction,’ whereas for those committed after 2014, there is. In summary, we believe this may be of interest to Brazilians: with regard to crimes subject to “universal jurisdiction”—and more specifically the crime of private corruption—Brazilian citizens are not subject to such “universal jurisdiction” for private corruption in cases where the crimes took place solely in Brazil.”
According to criminal defense attorney Davi Tangerino, who holds a Ph.D. in Law from FGV, the most important aspect of the trial is the fact that the crime should also be punishable in Brazil. This is precisely the element that is missing in the case involving the soccer player. The crime of private corruption simply does not exist in Brazil, and in Spain, the relevant provisions were not enacted until 2014.
“Brazil does not criminalize corruption between individuals. We cannot apply Brazilian laws to events taking place in Spain, as there is no law criminalizing private corruption in Brazil. And although private corruption is classified as a crime in Spain, it cannot be enforced on Brazilian territory, as there is no identical provision in Brazil,” he concludes.
