The Court Says No to Made-Up Notary Requirements

If you’ve ever signed a power of attorney in Brazil, odds are the notary told you it needed an expiration date. In some regions, it’s long been treated as a standard requirement. Frankly, it’s not a bad idea to include one. But here’s the truth: the law doesn’t require it.

In a recent decision, Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ) confirmed what many lawyers have argued for years. Notary offices cannot require that a power of attorney include an expiration date unless the law specifically says so.

So where did this so-called rule come from? Simply put, nowhere. Notaries made it up.

Like many other examples of Brazilian bureaucracy, it’s a practice born from risk-aversion and habit. In the State of Minas Gerais, for instance, it became common for notaries to insist on expiration dates, likely as a way to help shield themselves from potential liability.

Powers of attorney are critical tools in Brazil for both residents and foreigners. Whether you’re authorizing someone to sell property on your behalf or manage your business for you, you need a document that remains valid and effective for as long as you decide. Being forced to renew a valid document every 30 days only adds unnecessary cost and hassle with no legal justification.

The court’s message in this case is clear: the notary’s job is to witness signatures and authenticate documents, not to impose requirements that don’t exist in the law. It’s up to you to decide how long you want your power of attorney to be valid.