The Scope of Application of Law No. 11,340/2006: The Concept of Gender-Based Violence and Its Implications for Jurisdictional Competence

Abstract

This study examines the concept of gender-based violence against women as a criterion for the application of Law No. 11,340/2006—commonly known as the Maria da Penha Law—and how it has been interpreted by the Brazilian Judiciary in concrete cases. Judicial activity gives concrete meaning to the terms used in legal norms, endowing them with binding force and state authority through interpretations that are ostensibly endorsed by society as a whole.

When dealing with terms carrying strong semantic weight, the role of adjudicating bodies becomes even more significant and complex. In fields characterized by a high degree of autonomy—such as law—the process of reinterpretation is not a neutral hermeneutic exercise, but often reflects prevailing and potentially oppressive social norms, particularly when applied to groups lacking substantial symbolic capital.

Thus, the struggle of historically oppressed groups gains little from the enactment of protective legislation when it is not accompanied by equally affirmative judicial interpretations. The protective scope of the Maria da Penha Law is undermined when its application disregards entrenched patterns of subordination and inequality imposed on women by the majority of Western institutions.

The study of feminist critical theories and the historical background of the Maria da Penha Law provides a deeper understanding of the concept of gender within the analysis of the social distribution of power, while also supporting a critical assessment of how local courts have interpreted the requirements for the application of the law.