# Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105648750](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105648750)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-3747-of-april-10-1960

## Summary
Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960 is a Brazilian federal statute that reorganized the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Maritime Court (Tribunal Marítimo). Promulgated by President Juscelino Kubitschek and published in Rio de Janeiro, this legislative act represents a formal written document that creates law within Brazil's federal system and remains accessible through the official LexML digital repository and the Planalto website.

## Key Facts
- **Legal Nature:** A federal statute (formal written document that creates law, encompassing acts, executive orders, and by-laws) and instance of statutory law in Brazil
- **Primary Function:** Reorganizes the Prosecutor's Office at the Maritime Court (REORGANIZA A PROCURADORIA JUNTO AO TRIBUNAL MARITIMO)
- **Official Title:** Lei nº 3747, de 10 de abril de 1960
- **Promulgation Date:** April 10, 1960
- **Promulgating Authority:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil under President Juscelino Kubitschek
- **Publication Location:** Rio de Janeiro
- **Jurisdictional Scope:** Applies to the entire Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Legal Citation Format:** Lei nº 3747/1960
- **LexML Identifier:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1960-04-10;3747
- **Digital Availability:** Full text available at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3747.htm
- **Copyright Status:** As an official legislative enactment, this statute is in the public domain in Brazil and jurisdictions like the United States under the edict of government doctrine
- **Wikimedia Project:** Included in WikiProject Brazilian Laws for documentation and maintenance

## FAQs
**What specific institutional change did Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960 enact?**
The law restructured the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Maritime Court, reorganizing its composition, functions, or administrative framework within Brazil's maritime legal system.

**Who signed this law into effect and what was the historical context?**
President Juscelino Kubitschek promulgated the law on April 10, 1960, during his presidency (1956-1961), a period marked by rapid industrialization and the construction of Brasília as Brazil's new capital.

**Where can legal researchers access the authentic text of this statute?**
The complete official text is digitally preserved at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3747.htm and cataloged in the LexML Brazil system under the identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1960-04-10;3747.

**How does this law fit into Brazil's legislative hierarchy?**
As a federal statute, it represents a formal written document enacted through presidential promulgation, creating binding legal norms that apply nationwide, distinct from state or municipal legislation.

**What is the proper way to cite this law in academic or legal writing?**
The standard citation is "Lei nº 3747/1960" or "Lei nº 3747, de 10 de abril de 1960," which identifies the law by number and date in accordance with Brazilian legal citation conventions.

**In what language was the law originally drafted and published?**
The statute was composed and published in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of the Federative Republic of Brazil.

**Why is this statute not subject to copyright restrictions?**
Official legislative enactments like this law are considered public domain works under the edict of government doctrine, ensuring free public access to the laws governing society.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960 exemplifies the concrete manifestation of statutory law that structures Brazil's specialized judicial institutions. By reorganizing the Prosecutor's Office at the Maritime Court, this statute addressed the administrative and functional needs of a specific sector of Brazil's legal system dealing with maritime affairs, which is critical for a country with a 7,491-kilometer coastline and extensive river systems including the Amazon. The law's enactment under President Kubitschek's administration reflects the broader modernization efforts of Brazil's federal apparatus during a transformative period in the country's political and economic development. Its preservation in digital repositories like LexML and inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws demonstrates Brazil's commitment to open government principles, ensuring that citizens, legal practitioners, and researchers can access primary legal sources without restriction. As a public domain document, it reinforces the rule of law by making the exact text freely available to all who are subject to its provisions. The statute also illustrates the hierarchical nature of Brazil's legal system, where federal legislation establishes frameworks for specialized courts and prosecutorial bodies, contributing to the systematic organization of the Brazilian state. Its existence as a cataloged, authority-controlled entity in knowledge bases enables precise legal research and comparative law studies, supporting both domestic jurisprudence and international understanding of Brazilian legislative processes.

## Notable For
- **Specific Institutional Reorganization:** One of the few federal statutes exclusively focused on restructuring the Maritime Court's prosecutorial apparatus rather than creating general criminal or civil law
- **Presidential Promulgation:** Signed by Juscelino Kubitschek, a president renowned for building Brasília and modernizing Brazil's infrastructure
- **Digital Preservation:** Cataloged in the LexML Brazil system with a persistent URN identifier (urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1960-04-10;3747) for permanent digital access
- **Maritime Law Specificity:** Addresses a specialized area of Brazilian jurisprudence dealing with maritime commerce, navigation, and naval affairs
- **Public Domain Status:** Exempt from copyright as an official government edict, ensuring unrestricted dissemination
- **Wikimedia Documentation:** Subject to active curation through WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating its importance for encyclopedic coverage of Brazilian legislation
- **Rio de Janeiro Publication:** Published in the then-capital city, just before the federal government relocated to Brasília in April 1960
- **Bilingual Citation Potential:** Recognized in both Portuguese ("Lei nº 3747/1960") and English contexts as "Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960"

## Body

### Legal Classification and Nature
Law No. 3747 of April 10, 1960 is formally classified as a **statute**, which represents a foundational legal concept globally recognized as a formal written document that creates law. As a statute, it functions as both a written work and a rule, serving as the concrete manifestation of statutory law within Brazil's federal system. The law is composed of legal norms and resulted from the legislative process, preceded by draft laws and ultimately caused by the legal act of presidential promulgation. Structurally, it falls under the category of "act" as defined in legal taxonomies—specifically a legislative act passed by the federal executive authority. The statute is cataloged in major library systems under Dewey Decimal classifications 342.057 and 348.02, and holds authority control identifiers including Library of Congress ID sh85127611 and GND ID 4020660-9. In semantic web ontologies, it aligns with the Schema.org Legislation class, enabling structured data representation.

### Historical Context and Promulgation
The statute was promulgated on April 10, 1960 by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil during the administration of President Juscelino Kubitschek. This timing is significant as it occurred just days before the official inauguration of Brasília as the new capital on April 21, 1960, representing one of the final legislative acts issued from Rio de Janeiro as the seat of federal power. Brazil in 1960 was undergoing massive modernization, with Kubitschek's "Target Plan" (Plano de Metas) driving industrialization and infrastructure development. The law's promulgation followed constitutional procedures established by the 1946 Constitution then in effect, requiring presidential signature for enactment. The act of promulgation itself represents the final step in the legislative process, transforming a proposed bill into binding law applicable throughout Brazil's territory.

### Content and Institutional Scope
The law's digest explicitly states its purpose: "REORGANIZA A PROCURADORIA JUNTO AO TRIBUNAL MARITIMO" (Reorganizes the Prosecutor's Office at the Maritime Court). This indicates the statute addressed structural changes to a specialized prosecutorial body attached to Brazil's maritime judiciary. The Maritime Court (Tribunal Marítimo) historically handled cases related to naval affairs, maritime commerce, fishing violations, and other ocean-related legal matters. By reorganizing its Prosecutor's Office, the law likely modified appointment procedures, jurisdictional boundaries, staffing structures, or operational protocols. The main subjects are categorized as "nomination" (Nomeação) and "restructuring" (Reorganização), suggesting the statute concerned both personnel appointments and institutional reconfiguration. This specialization reflects Brazil's geographic reality as a country with extensive Atlantic coastline, major port systems, and significant maritime economic activity.

### Jurisdictional and Geographic Application
The statute applies to the entire Federative Republic of Brazil, a federal republic occupying 8,515,767 km² and comprising 26 states plus one Federal District. Brazil's maritime jurisdiction extends to its territorial waters, exclusive economic zone, and continental shelf, making maritime law enforcement critical for national sovereignty and economic interests. The law's application spans all coastal states from Amapá in the north to Rio Grande do Sul in the south, covering major port cities including Santos, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Recife, and Belém. As federal legislation, it overrides any conflicting state or municipal provisions regarding the organization of federal maritime institutions.

### Publication and Accessibility
The law was published in Rio de Janeiro, which served as Brazil's capital from 1763 until April 1960. Its official text is preserved in multiple digital repositories for permanent public access. The primary source is the Planalto.gov.br website at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3747.htm, maintained by the federal government. Additionally, the statute is cataloged in the LexML Brazil system with the persistent identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1960-04-10;3747, following the URN:LEX standard for legal documents. This dual preservation ensures scholars, lawyers, and citizens can verify the authentic text. The law is written in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language spoken by over 213 million people and used exclusively for all federal legislation.

### Authority Control and Knowledge Organization
The statute is formally documented in bibliographic authority systems worldwide. It carries the legal citation "Lei nº 3747/1960" for consistent referencing. Within Wikimedia projects, it is tracked by WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a collaborative effort to document Brazil's legislative heritage. The law's description as a "Brazilian law" in knowledge bases connects it to broader classifications of Brazilian legislation. Its LexML identifier places it within a systematic collection of Brazilian federal laws from 1950-1969, enabling chronological and thematic research. The statute benefits from the public domain status of official Brazilian legislation, ensuring its text can be freely reproduced, analyzed, and distributed without copyright limitations.

### Relationship to Brazil's Legal System
As a federal statute, this law operates within Brazil's tripartite government structure established by the Constitution. Brazil's National Congress (comprising the Federal Senate and Chamber of Deputies) holds legislative power, while the President exercises executive authority including promulgation. The Supreme Federal Court (STF) serves as the highest judicial authority, though specialized courts like the Maritime Court handle specific matters. The statute's reorganization of a prosecutorial office reflects the prosecutorial function within Brazil's legal framework, where prosecutors (procuradores) serve as public officials responsible for representing the state in legal proceedings. The law's enactment in 1960 occurred during the Second Brazilian Republic (1946-1964), a democratic period preceding the military regime that began in 1964.

### Cultural and Encyclopedic Significance
The statute represents a specific artifact of Brazil's legislative output during a pivotal modernization period. It is documented in the LexML repository, which serves as Brazil's official portal for legislative information, analogous to the function of the Library of Congress in the United States. The law's inclusion in structured data projects enables computational analysis of Brazilian legislative trends, such as tracking institutional reorganizations over time. For comparative law scholars, it provides insight into how Brazil managed specialized judicial institutions during its development as a modern state. The statute's focus on maritime affairs also reflects Brazil's historical engagement with maritime law, influenced by Portuguese legal traditions and international maritime conventions. As part of the public record, it contributes to transparency in governance and supports the principle that citizens must have access to the laws that bind them.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1960-04-10;3747)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=3747&ano=1960&data=10/04/1960&ato=7f1MTWq50dVRVT11c)
3. LexML Brasil