# Corporatism in Brazil I often find it hard to explain just how deeply Brazil’s state and market are influenced (if not captured) by organized interest groups. In Brazil, corporatism means that powerful groups such as trade unions, professional associations, monopolistic companies, and even notary offices are legally embedded into the structure of the state. These groups gain privileges, protections, and economic advantages through laws, regulations, and government support. --- ## Entries ### [[2025-06-05]]: INSS scandal In early 2025, a scandal broke out revealing that retiree associations had been charging fees directly from people's INSS benefits without permission. These groups claim to represent pensioners. Legally, they could do this thanks to old arrangements that gave these entities the right to deduct payments directly from benefits. Originally, these associations played a helpful role. In rural areas, where the government's presence was weaker, they often determined who qualified for rural retirement. Over time, however, what began as a workaround turned into a power structure. These groups became entrenched in the system with minimal oversight and direct access to retirees' money. ### [[2025-06-07]]: Cartórios in Minas Gerais In 2025, the state of Minas Gerais passed a law that sharply increased fees for notary and property registry services, some by over 1,200%. A document that once cost R$18,000 jumped to R$726,000. Proposed by the state judiciary and approved without much debate, the law also redirected 25% of the new revenue to public-sector institutions like the Prosecutor’s Office, Public Defender’s Office, and State Attorney General. In Brazil, cartórios are privately run but state-authorized monopolies, often inherited and rarely scrutinized. They handle vital services (property transfers, contracts, registrations) with little oversight. This episode revealed the core of Brazilian corporatism: a system where legal structures serve organized interest groups within and around the state, enabling them to extract revenue from mandatory public services under the guise of legality. ### [[2025-05-31]]: Church land fees In Brazil, especially in cities named after Catholic saints, much urban land originated from colonial-era donations made by landowners to the Church in the name of saints. These donations aimed to establish chapels that later became churches and central parts of towns. Today, the Catholic Church still holds **domínio direto** (direct ownership) over many of these lands, while residents have only **domínio útil** (beneficial ownership). Whenever such properties are sold, a fee called **laudêmio** (typically 2.5% of the sale value) must be paid to the Church. This fee remains active even though the creation of new **enfiteuse** contracts was banned by Brazil’s 2002 Civil Code. The Church is considered the [[Catholic Church Governance|legal representative]] of the saints, but it does not maintain or disclose a unified registry of these lands or the revenue collected. Records are fragmented across local notary offices. Laudêmio was abolished in Portugal, but still exists in Brazil. Even the former imperial family continues to receive laudêmio payments on lands in Petrópolis (RJ), despite Brazil being a republic and officially secular.