69 Anuário Yearbook ABLA 2013 Responsabilidade Responsibility Hundreds of Brazilian businesspeople, in every region of the country, live under the constant threat of being convicted of crimes that they unquestionably have never committed. As absurd as it may seem, the only reason that makes them take these risks is the fact that they operate car rental or leasing companies! Even if the obey all the laws, pay their taxes, and create thousands of jobs, they may still be subpoenaed for crimes they had nothing to do with. This situation is bizarre and requires clarification. The situation was given rise to for all the car rental and leasing company owners by Binding Precedent 492, issued by the the Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF), establishing the company, which owns the vehicle, as jointly liable for the acts of the drivers. To put it simply - the businessperson renting or leasing a car to an authorized person is also liable for any crimes they commit while driving. For example, if the family of a person who has been knocked down appeals to the courts and the car belongs to the rental or leasing company, its owner will be co-responsible. Following this logic, the larger the business, the greater the threat. Imagine how many risks are run by the owner of a company that has thousands of vehicles and units in various states of the country. Will they be able to sleep if they think that because of a driving error, an accident, an act of negligence, or some other reason, a driver causes an accident and they - the owner - are guilty? There are cases where two or more incidents on the same day mean owners have to give statements in police stations and courts a long way from each other. Errors can occur in any area. On March 23 this year, for example, David Ranta left prison in the United States after serving 23 years of a 37-year sentence. He was released when an investigation proved his innocence. This was one more case among many in which the accused serves a sentence and it is then discovered they were not guilty. In the case of Binding Precedent 492, it is time the Brazilian authorities corrected this error that has lasted decades and caused so much trouble. It has no support in Brazil’s Civil Code of 2002, but it continues to be applied to its full extent. Currently, in the rental and leasing sector, there is only one way to spend a day without being subjected to the risk of being listed as co-responsible for crimes and misdemeanors: don’t rent or lease out a car. This paradox must be done away with so that businesspeople do not suffer the worst punishment of all: paying for crimes they have not committed. The worst punishment is to pay for a crime that you didn’t commit
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