Judicial activism and democracy

an analysis from the perspective of the Federal Supreme Court’s actions

Abstract

The present work aims to explore the main foundations and understandings regarding the concept and application of judicial activism, bringing to the fore topics of social and academic relevance, especially in areas related to the work of the Federal Supreme Court. In this sense, the guiding themes of this academic work were about legal security and democracy. The judiciary has positioned itself to act actively, exercising its role as protector of the Constitution, even if to do so it has to act beyond the delimitation of the Powers established by the Federal Constitution. Throughout the studies, it was observed that many jurists and legal practitioners are in favor of judicial activism, as long as it takes the necessary precautions and on an exceptional basis. In view of the proposed analysis, the social importance of respect for democracy was exposed and addressed, as well as the preservation of harmony between powers, all without compromising legal security and the tripartition of powers. The methodology used was descriptive, qualitative, and inductive, starting from a broad analysis where bibliographic and documentary review techniques were used, based on doctrines, legislation, and jurisprudence.