Head of the State Civil House, Arthur Lima, is accused of benefiting a law firm partner who closed a million-dollar deal in 2023
The secretary general of the Civil House of the government of Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans) in São Paulo, Arthur Lima, appointed his partner, lawyer Carlos Augusto Duque Estrada, to 2 positions on the boards of directors of state-owned companies in São Paulo. Lima has held the position in the São Paulo government since January 2023.
Duque Estrada has been a member of the board of Develop SP – state-owned economic development company – and since September has also been part of the board of Prodesp (Data Processing Company of the State of São Paulo) – state-owned information technology company in the State. Duque Estrada and Lima have been partners at the law firm Duque Estrada Advogados e Associados since November 2022.
Duque Estrada's move to these companies has the participation of Tarcísio's right-hand man. This is because the governor decreed in January last year that all appointments of secretaries for positions of administrators and inspectors of state-owned companies must pass through the Civil House and are analyzed by Codec (Council for the Defense of State Capitals), which is chaired by Lima . In other words, Lima centralizes all appointments and approved the partner's move to state-owned companies. Read the complete of the decree (PDF – 80 kB).
Duque Estrada's name appears in the Official Gazette of São Paulo as advisor to Desenvolvimento SP for the first time on October 10, 2023. According to the document, the lawyer had his name approved for the state-owned company's board on April 24 of the same year.
The following month, on November 29, Duque Estrada is also mentioned in the official diary as an independent advisor to Prodesp. This time, his name was approved at a meeting of the state-owned company's board on September 27, 2023.
Desenvolvimento SP is a development agency linked to SDE (Secretariat of Economic Development) of the Government of São Paulo. Last year, the company registered R$1 billion in credit released to public agents and micro, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs in all municipalities in São Paulo. The result for 2023 was 36% higher than the 12 months of 2022 (R$735.7 million).
Prodesp is linked to the Secretariat of Management and Digital Government.
MILLION AGREEMENT
In April, Duque Estrada's office closed a negotiation worth R$20 million with the Lassie 1 investment fund, managed by BTG Pactual.
The transaction involved the sale of Varig's credit rights. The fund acquired the rights to receive R$80 million in legal fees that the office must receive from the airline, which has been bankrupt for more than a decade.
The case against Varig was initiated in 2005 and Duque Estrada represented the National Union of Aeronauts. The action was filed by former Varig employees.
To the Power360, the Civil House of São Paulo reported that Lima did not act in this labor process and that he did not receive any value from the transaction. The advisor told the digital newspaper that this negotiation is a private operation between the lawyer and the investment fund.
When asked whether the appointment of the partner constitutes a conflict of interest, the São Paulo government responded that Duque Estrada's approval on the board of state-owned companies followed all the procedures set out in the companies' statutes.
ORDER OF FACTS
- May 2022: Lima is invited by Duque Estrada to be a partner at the law firm;
- November 2022: Lima becomes a partner of Duque Estrada;
- January 2023: Lima leaves the office to become secretary general of the Civil House; Tarcísio publishes ordinance that centralizes appointments in the Civil House;
- April 2023: Duque Estrada's office closes an agreement to receive R$20 million and the lawyer becomes an advisor to Desenvolvimento SP;
- September 2023: Duque Estrada becomes an advisor to Prodesp.
Read the full note from the Civil House below:
“Arthur Lima did not act in the aforementioned labor case. He received the invitation to join the partnership in May 2022, becoming a partner at the firm in November 22, ceasing to practice law when he was appointed Secretary of State.”
“He also did not participate in the transaction or receive any amount, since the legal fees transferred were the personal fees of lawyer Duque Estrada. On the other hand, this transaction is private – lawyer Duque Estrada negotiated the right to receive his contractual legal fees with another legal entity, not involving anything in the public sphere at any time.”
“Conflict of Interest is the situation generated by the confrontation between public and private interests, which may compromise the collective interest or improperly influence the performance of public functions, a fact that did not occur. The relationship is strictly private in a labor process.”
“Appointments to boards of directors are made strictly taking into account compliance with the requirements set out in laws, requirements and prohibitions set out in the Bylaws of the state-owned company, in addition to having their nomination scrutinized by the Eligibility Committee, provided for in Article 10 of the Law 13,303/16.”
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