In a ruling published in December 2014, the Brazilian Supreme Court held that a tax penalty exceeding the amount of tax due is unconstitutional. The ruling was based on the constitutional tax principle of non-confiscation established in the Brazilian Constitution. The case involved a disputed penalty of 120% of the tax due.
Although the ruling only applies to one particular case, it follows a trend of rulings regarding tax penalty disputes. The court has heard cases involving penalties of as…