The Court of Appeals of the State of São Paulo (TJ-SP) decided not to admit the initiation of an Incident to Resolve Repetitive Demands (IRDR), brought by the Public Prosecutor of the State of São Paulo (MP-SP) to unify the legal treatment applicable to the management of contaminated areas in the state.

In spite of the acknowledged relevance of the topic, the majority of the judges within the Special Group of Environmental Law Chambers understood that one of the requirements for admissibility of the IRDR was not present, namely the existence of multiple suits in progress, at trial or appellate level, debating the same legal theory. MP-SP mentioned in its complaint a large number of public civil actions that discussed the management of contaminated areas in the state and the occurrence of conflicting decisions on the subject. However, it did not present diverging legal theories in the suits in progress, which is a requirement for admission of the IRDR.

In the judgment that decided the question and during the debates held in the sessions to decide the matter, it was stated that the Court cannot be required to exercise an advisory function, indicating which legal interpretation is the most appropriate for a legal text or a certain fact.

Despite the dismissal of the IRDR, the incident may be raised again if the requirement for admissibility is satisfied, in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure.

The decision was rendered on August 10, 2017, and the appellate judgment that did not admit the IRDR can be consulted aqui.