# Law No. 3331 of December 5, 1957

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105649157](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105649157)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-3331-of-december-5-1957

## Summary
Law No. 3331 of December 5, 1957 is a Brazilian federal statute promulgated by President Juscelino Kubitschek that authorized a special budgetary credit (Crédito Especial) for the judiciary. This formal legislative enactment was published in Rio de Janeiro and remains accessible through Brazil's official legal information system.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title**: Lei nº 3331, de 5 de dezembro de 1957
- **Legal Citation**: Lei nº 3331/1957
- **Date of Promulgation**: December 5, 1957
- **Approving Authority**: Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, with President Juscelino Kubitschek performing the promulgation act
- **Legal Classification**: Instance of a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law and serves as a subclass of written work, document, and rule
- **Primary Subject Matter**: Special budgetary adjustment (Crédito Especial) for the judiciary (Judiciário)
- **Jurisdiction**: Applies to the entire Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Place of Publication**: Rio de Janeiro
- **Language**: Brazilian Portuguese
- **LexML Brazil Identifier**: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1957-12-05;3331
- **Official URL**: Available at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3331.htm
- **Copyright Status**: As a statute, it is in the public domain in the United States under the edict of government doctrine and similarly in France
- **Wikimedia Project**: Subject of WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating active curation within Wikipedia's legal content initiative

## FAQs
**What is Law No. 3331 of December 5, 1957?**
Law No. 3331 is a Brazilian federal statute that created a special budgetary credit specifically for the judiciary branch, enacted on December 5, 1957, during Juscelino Kubitschek's presidency.

**What does this law regulate?**
The law addresses special budgetary adjustments (Crédito Especial) directed to the judiciary (Judiciário), representing a fiscal allocation mechanism for Brazil's judicial system.

**Who approved this law and when?**
President Juscelino Kubitschek approved the law through promulgation on December 5, 1957, exercising executive authority under the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil.

**Where was this law published?**
The statute was published in Rio de Janeiro, which served as Brazil's federal capital until the inauguration of Brasília in 1960.

**How can I access the full text?**
The complete text is available at the official URL https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3331.htm, maintained by the Brazilian government's legislative documentation system.

**What type of legal document is this?**
This is a statute, a formal written document that creates law and functions as the concrete manifestation of statutory law, distinct from broader concepts of legislation while being caused by the legislative process.

**What is the LexML identifier?**
The LexML Brazil identifier is urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1957-12-05;3331, following the URN:Lex standard for Brazilian legal documents.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 3331 of December 5, 1957 matters because it represents a concrete fiscal intervention during a pivotal developmental period in Brazilian history. The statute emerged during Juscelino Kubitschek's presidency (1956-1961), an era defined by the "Plano de Metas" (Goals Plan) and the construction of Brasília, when the federal government actively mobilized resources to modernize infrastructure and institutions. By creating a special credit for the judiciary, the law demonstrated recognition that judicial infrastructure required targeted financial support separate from ordinary budgetary processes. This approach reflects the constitutional principle of separation of powers, ensuring the judiciary could address its specific operational needs without competing directly with executive branch priorities. The law's inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws signals its ongoing relevance as a documented element of Brazil's statutory evolution, while its availability through the Planalto portal and LexML system exemplifies Brazil's commitment to open government principles. As a public domain document, it embodies the democratic ideal that citizens must have unrestricted access to the laws governing them. The statute's focus on judicial financing also foreshadowed contemporary debates about judicial independence and resource allocation, establishing precedents for how subsequent administrations would address court system funding. Its existence within the 1950-1969 legislative collection places it among post-World War II modernization efforts that reshaped Brazil's federal apparatus.

## Notable For
- **Specific Judicial Funding**: Uniquely targets the judiciary with a special budgetary credit rather than general appropriations
- **Kubitschek Era Legislation**: Enacted during Brazil's most intensive development period, characterized by the construction of a new capital and industrial acceleration
- **Rio de Janeiro Publication**: One of the last federal statutes published in Rio de Janeiro before the capital transferred to Brasília in 1960
- **LexML Cataloging**: Assigned a permanent URN:Lex identifier, making it machine-readable and permanently citable in digital legal systems
- **WikiProject Inclusion**: Recognized by Wikipedia's specialized project for Brazilian laws, indicating its significance for legal documentation
- **Dual Subject Classification**: Explicitly categorized under both special budgetary credits and judiciary matters in official metadata
- **Public Domain Status**: Exempt from copyright restrictions, ensuring free reproduction and distribution
- **Schema.org Equivalence**: As a statute, it aligns with the https://schema.org/Legislation class used in structured web data
- **Portuguese Language**: Written in Brazilian Portuguese, reflecting the official language of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Federal Scope**: Applies nationwide across all 26 states and the Federal District, unlike state or municipal by-laws

## Body

### Legal Identity and Classification
Law No. 3331 of December 5, 1957 is formally classified as a statute, which represents a foundational legal concept defined as a formal written document that creates law. This classification places it within the taxonomy of legal terms as both an instance of a legal concept and a subclass of written work, document, and rule. The statute functions as the concrete manifestation of statutory law, composed of legal norms and serving as part of the broader concepts of law and legal act. Its creation followed draft laws and was caused by the legislative process, resulting in statutory law that applies to Brazil's entire jurisdiction. The entity is equivalent to the `https://schema.org/Legislation` class used in semantic web technologies, enabling structured data representation. The law's Wikidata description identifies it as a "Brazilian law," while its instance_of property explicitly categorizes it as a statute with sitelink_count: 117, indicating extensive cross-lingual documentation.

### Authority and Promulgation
The statute was approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, with President Juscelino Kubitschek performing the promulgation act on December 5, 1957. This approval mechanism reflects the constitutional process where executive authority gives final effect to legislative acts. The determination_method is recorded as "promulgation," distinguishing it from other forms of enactment. The law emerged during Kubitschek's transformative presidency, which oversaw Brazil's rapid industrialization and the construction of Brasília, the new capital inaugurated in 1960. The Presidency's role in approving the law underscores the executive branch's constitutional duty to execute and publish federal legislation.

### Subject Matter and Scope
The statute addresses two primary subjects according to its metadata: special budgetary adjustment (Crédito Especial) and the judiciary (Judiciário). The stated_as qualifiers reveal the law's internal terminology, with "Credito Especial" describing the fiscal mechanism and "Judiciario" identifying the beneficiary branch. This dual focus indicates the law's purpose: to provide extraordinary financial resources specifically for judicial operations. As a federal statute, it applies to the entire jurisdiction of Brazil, encompassing all states and the Federal District. The main_subject classification places it within both fiscal policy and judicial administration domains, reflecting the intersection of budgetary law and separation of powers principles.

### Publication and Accessibility
The law was published in Rio de Janeiro on December 5, 1957, at a time when the city still functioned as Brazil's federal capital. The publication_date is precisely recorded as 1957-12-05, with references confirming the date through both LexML and the Presidency's legislative portal. The language_of_work_or_name is Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of the Federative Republic of Brazil. The legal_citation_of_this_text is standardized as Lei nº 3331/1957, following Brazilian legal citation conventions. The statute is available through multiple official channels, ensuring permanent public access.

### Digital Access and Permanent Identifiers
The full text is available at the official URL https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3331.htm, maintained by the Civilian House of the Presidency. This portal contains the complete collection of Brazilian federal legislation from 1950-1969. The law is cataloged in the LexML Brazil system with the identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1957-12-05;3331, following the URN:Lex standard that provides permanent, location-independent identifiers for legal documents. This identifier structure breaks down as: urn (Uniform Resource Name), lex (legal documents), br (Brazil), federal (federal level), lei (law), 1957-12-05 (date), and 3331 (number). The work_available_at_url property confirms the Planalto portal as the authoritative source, with references dated 2021-02-17.

### Historical and Political Context
The law's enactment on December 5, 1957 occurred during Juscelino Kubitschek's presidency, a period marked by the "Plano de Metas" that prioritized energy, transport, food, education, and heavy industry. This developmentalist agenda required robust judicial infrastructure to handle increased legal activity from economic expansion. Rio de Janeiro remained the capital until April 21, 1960, making this among the final federal statutes published there before the administrative shift to Brasília. The law's focus on judicial funding aligns with Kubitschek's modernization vision, which recognized that institutional capacity required adequate resources. The Federative Republic of Brazil, established by the 1889 constitution and restructured by the 1988 constitution, maintained its federal republic, presidential system throughout this period.

### Technical Metadata and Authority Control
The statute is subject to WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a Wikimedia initiative focused on improving coverage of Brazilian legislation. This project ensures accurate representation and linking of legal entities across Wikipedia. The law's applies_to_jurisdiction property confirms its nationwide application. The language_of_work_or_name is explicitly Brazilian Portuguese, distinguishing it from European Portuguese variants. The on_focus_list_of_wikimedia_project property connects it to broader efforts to document Brazil's legal framework. As a statute, it benefits from the public domain status that applies to official legal documents, ensuring no copyright restrictions impede access or reuse.

### Relationship to Brazilian Legal System
Law No. 3331 operates within Brazil's civil law tradition, where statutes form the primary source of law. The law is part of the federal legislative corpus, distinct from state or municipal legislation. Its classification as a statute places it within a category that includes acts, executive orders, and by-laws, though it specifically represents a legislative act. The statute's creation involved draft laws and resulted from the legislative process, following the bicameral structure of Brazil's National Congress (Federal Senate and Chamber of Deputies). The law remains in force unless subsequently amended or repealed, continuing to govern judicial budgetary procedures.

### Documentation and Preservation
The law is documented through multiple authoritative sources, including LexML.gov.br and the Presidency's legislative portal, with reference dates in 2021 confirming ongoing maintenance. The place_of_publication is recorded as Rio de Janeiro, preserving historical accuracy about the capital's location at enactment. The statute's metadata includes aliases that mirror its official title, ensuring discoverability. The combination of URL availability, URN:Lex identification, and Wikidata classification creates a robust framework for permanent access and machine-readable legal information.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1957-12-05;3331)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=3331&ano=1957&data=05/12/1957&ato=d4cATVE1kMNRVTf5a)