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Ethical guardrails are urgently needed in Brazil, where it has been common for justices and their relatives to accept payments from litigants and maintain close ties with their lawyers. Germany and the U.S. established ethics codes after similar crises exposed judicial misconduct. Now, Brazil's Supreme Court must follow suit with transparent rules on gifts, payments and conflicts of interest to restore public trust.
While some interactions between Banco Master and figures linked to the Supreme Court and the Brazilian government have raised concerns, there is no evidence of illegality despite media attention. By contrast, center-right politicians such as Ciro Nogueira and Ibaneis Rocha have openly mobilized political power to push for a state-backed bailout that would shield the bank and socialize private losses.