After the STF, the Justice of Espírito Santo also releases Buser; understand the decision

The Court of Justice of Espírito Santo suspended the lower court sentence that prohibited Buser from intermediating trips in intercity road transport in Espírito Santo. Judge Arthur José Neiva de Almeida, of the 4th Civil Chamber, granted suspensive effect to the platform’s appeal, which releases the operation until the collegiate judges the merits of the action.

The decision was published on July 29 and expressly cites the order of Minister Kassio Nunes Marques, of the Federal Supreme Court, who released Buser in Paraná after two years of prohibition. It was the first time that the STF analyzed collaborative chartering, a model in which passengers meet through the app to charter a bus.

Buser claims to have about 600 thousand registered users in Espírito Santo and more than 14 million in the country. According to the company, intercity routes in the state should resume operations in the coming days. The interstate highways that pass through the Espírito Santo territory were not interrupted.

The pillars of the decision

The lawsuit was filed by the Union of Passenger Transport Companies of the State of Espírito Santo (Setpes). In the first instance, the 5th Court of the State Public Treasury of Vitória prohibited the platform from offering, disclosing

In accepting Buser’s request, the judge pointed out that the issue “has received different solutions in national jurisprudence” and that the STF’s decision demonstrates that there is real controversy about the nature of the activity. He also cited a previous judgment of the 4th Civil Chamber itself, in which the illegality of the model was not recognized, and considered that stopping the operation abruptly would bring effects that are difficult to repair for the company and passengers.

“The STF’s decision is already establishing the jurisprudence on our model,” says Giovani Ravagnani, Buser’s legal director. According to him, the expectation is that the Supreme Court’s understanding will be applied in the other courts in the country.

Scoreboard is still open

The company’s reading, however, is not repeated throughout the Judiciary. Four days after the STF’s order, on July 21, Judge Ana Liarte, of the São Paulo Court of Justice, ordered Buser to stop intermediating trips between São Paulo and São José dos Campos until the appeal is judged. The lawsuit was filed by Pássaro Marron and involves Artesp.

At the center of the dispute is the difference between closed-circuit chartering, in which the same group hires round trips, and the individual sale of seats at fixed times, which traditional companies see as regular transport in disguise.