New members take office at Brazil’s antitrust authority

With the mandate of several commissioners expiring toward the end of 2023, CADE’s Tribunal lacked the minimum quorum to make decisions for approximately two months (November 4-December 27), resulting in the suspension of ongoing proceedings. In December 2023, the Brazilian President and the Senate appointed and approved the four new members of Cade’s Administrative Tribunal – Diogo Thomson de Andrade, Camila Cabral Pires Alves, Carlos Jacques Vieira Gomes, and José Levi Mello do Amaral Júnior – who were subsequently sworn in over the course of January.

The quorum was restored on December 27, 2023, with the swearing-in of Diogo Thomson de Andrade as commissioner. A former interim and deputy superintendent general, Thomson de Andrade has held various positions at CADE over the years, serving as a federal prosecutor since 2004 and contributing to the Brazilian Competition Defense System since 2007. Thomson de Andrade was succeeded as deputy superintendent general by Felipe Neiva Mundim, who served as General Coordinator of the Department of Antitrust Analysis (CGAA4) since 2021 – responsible for analyzing non-fast-track transactions in regulated markets. Mundim will now be responsible for coordinating merger analysis and unilateral conduct investigations within Cade’s General Superintendence. The other deputy superintendent, Fernanda Machado, will continue to oversee investigations into cartels and collective conduct behavior.

After Commissioner Thomson de Andrade, Commissioners Camila Cabral Pires Alves, Carlos Jacques Vieira Gomes, and José Levi Mello do Amaral Júnior were also sworn in. Commissioner Camila Pires Alves has been a professor of Economics at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro since 2013 and has also served as CADE’s chief economist. Commissioner Carlos Jacques has been a legislative consultant in economic, regulatory, and business law matters for the Brazilian Senate since 2004, and previously served as the secretary of CADE’s Tribunal between 1998 and 2000.

Unlike the other new Commissioners, José Levi Mello do Amaral Júnior does not have previous professional experience at CADE. He is a professor of Constitutional Law at the University of São Paulo, served as ‘Brazil’s Attorney General between 2020 and 2021 and has been an attorney for the Brazilian Treasury since 2000. He has also held various government positions, including executive secretary of the Ministry of Justice between 2016 and 2017.

The new commissioners have established backgrounds working in government, and most have prior experience in dealing with competition law matters. With these nominations, CADE’s Tribunal will continue to be made up mostly of lawyers by training.

In addition to the new commissioners, CADE’s Tribunal includes President Alexandre Cordeiro (whose term expires in July 2025), Commissioner Gustavo Augusto Freitas de Lima (April 2026), and Commissioner Victor Oliveira Fernandes (June 2026).

The arrival of the new commissioners means that the lineup at CADE’s Tribunal has changed substantially. It remains to be seen whether this will lead to any changes in the Tribunal’s decisional practice on merger analysis and investigations.

Another recent change to Cade’s staff occurred within the DEE, with the appointment of Lílian Santos Marques Severino as its new chief economist in October 2023. Marques has an extensive track record working at Cade, having served as the chief advisor to Cade’s president, the general coordinator of antitrust analysis at Cade’s General Superintendence, and deputy chief economist at the DEE.

The current term of Cade’s General Superintendent, Alexandre Barreto, will end on February 13 of this year. However, he could still be reappointed for another two years.

For further information on competition law matters in Brazil, please contact Mattos Filho’s Antitrust practice area.