Overview

• Gilmar Mendes’s vote on June 11 marked the sixth justice to back holding platforms like Meta, X and Microsoft liable for illegal third-party posts, giving the court a majority.
• Justices have yet to agree on which categories of posts would be illegal, and Court President Luis Roberto Barroso will coordinate efforts to define the ruling’s boundaries.
• Four justices still need to cast ballots and previously recorded votes can be changed, keeping the final outcome uncertain.
• Under existing Brazilian law, platforms face liability only if they ignore court orders to remove hazardous user content.
• Congress could overturn any new liability rules, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned of possible visa restrictions for officials involved in censoring American citizens.