FGV Law School Student Co-Authors Book on Piercing the Corporate Veil in Brazil
Luiza Crispim Moreira, a student in FGV Law School’s undergraduate program, is a co-author of the book ‘Desconsideração da Personalidade Jurídica – Pressupostos – Consequências – Casuística’ (Piercing the Corporate Veil – Prerequisites – Consequences – Case Law), published by Quartier Latin. Her contribution, an article on the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice’s Case Law on piercing the corporate veil in Brazil, was based on the research she conducted for her Undergraduate Thesis.
Luiza Crispim Moreira, a student in FGV Law School’s undergraduate program, is the youngest author of the recently released book Piercing the Corporate Veil – Prerequisites – Consequences – Case Law, published by Quartier Latin. The two-volume work, edited by Marcelo von Adamek, a professor at the University of São Paulo (USP), and attorney André Nunes Conti, brings together articles from some of the leading scholars in the field—both from academia and legal practice—to address a range of unresolved issues surrounding the doctrine of piercing the corporate veil in Brazilian law.
The first volume focuses on the prerequisites and consequences of veil piercing, as well as the attribution of liability. The second volume delves into topics such as veil peeking, procedure, arbitration, bankruptcy, special statutes, and comparative law.
In her contribution, Luiza, now in her fifth year of study at FGV Law School, dedicated her article to analyzing patterns in the practical application of piercing the corporate veil. According to Luiza, her goal was to provide both a quantitative and qualitative overview of case law from the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) on the subject between 2018 and 2022. This period saw notable legal changes, including amendments to Article 50 of the Brazilian Civil Code under the “Law of Economic Freedom” (Lei da Liberdade Econômica) of 2019.
Her article is based on her Undergraduate Thesis, supervised by Professor Mariana Pargendler, who is also a contributor to the book. “By analyzing rulings from the STJ during this period, I systematized the Court's stance on key controversies related to the topic,” she explains. The research, she notes, confirmed the trend of greater use of veil piercing in cases involving the Consumer Protection Code, compared to those based on the Civil Code. Additionally, the thesis documented the expansive modality of veil piercing, a concept recognized in Brazilian scholarship but never before empirically mapped, and highlighted a tendency to link the doctrine of piercing the corporate veil to proof of willful misconduct in cases of irregular dissolution, even though this requirement is not explicitly stated in the Civil Code. “The study also found a small number of cases where veil piercing was authorized based solely on the existence of a corporate group, despite the Civil Code’s express prohibition of this criterion,” she reports.
The book also features contributions from FGV Law School professors Carlos Ari Sundfeld, Vera Monteiro, André Abbud, Renata Steiner, and Gilberto Gornati, as well as attorneys from Ferro, Castro Neves, Daltro & Gomide Advogados (Daltro de Campos Borges Filho, José Roberto de Castro Neves, Thiago Peixoto Alves, Karina Goldberg, Antonio Pedro Garcia de Souza, Ana Carolina Aquino, Marcos Pitanga Caeté Ferreira, and Luiza Peixoto) — the firm where Luiza is currently completing her internship.
Desconsideração da Personalidade Jurídica - Pressupostos – Consequências – Casuística - Volume I
Desconsideração da Personalidade Jurídica - Pressupostos – Consequências – Casuística - Volume II
