# Law No. 4117 of August 27, 1962

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105648279](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105648279)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-4117-of-august-27-1962

## Summary
Law No. 4117 of August 27, 1962 (Lei nº 4117, de 27 de agosto de 1962) is a Brazilian federal statute that institutes the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications (Código Brasileiro de Telecomunicações). Promulgated by President João Goulart and published in Brasília, it serves as the formal legal framework governing telecommunications within the jurisdiction of Brazil.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title:** Lei nº 4117, de 27 de agosto de 1962
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 4117/1962
- **Date of Enactment:** August 27, 1962
- **Place of Publication:** Brasília, Brazil
- **Classification:** Statute (formal written document that creates law)
- **Primary Purpose:** Institutes the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications (INSTITUI O CODIGO BRASILEIRO DE TELECOMUNICAÇÕES)
- **Approved By:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Promulgated By:** President João Goulart
- **Jurisdiction:** Brazil (nationwide application)
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Lexml Brazil ID:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-08-27;4117
- **Official URL:** https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4117.htm
- **WikiProject Affiliation:** On focus list of WikiProject Brazilian Laws
- **Schema.org Equivalent Class:** https://schema.org/Legislation
- **Copyright Status:** Public domain (under "edict of government doctrine" in jurisdictions like the United States and France)
- **Wikidata Description:** Brazilian law

## FAQs

**What is Law No. 4117 of August 27, 1962?**
Law No. 4117 is a Brazilian federal statute enacted on August 27, 1962, that formally institutes the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications, providing the legal foundation for regulating all telecommunications activities within the country.

**Who promulgated this law and when did it take effect?**
The law was promulgated by President João Goulart through the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil and took effect on its publication date, August 27, 1962, in Brasília.

**Where can the official text of this law be found?**
The full text is available at the official Brazilian government portal: https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4117.htm. It is also indexed under the Lexml Brazil identifier: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-08-27;4117.

**What type of legal instrument is this law?**
It is classified as a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law. Statutes are a subclass of "written work," "document," and "rule," and they act as the tangible manifestation of statutory law resulting from the legislative process.

**To which jurisdiction does this law apply?**
Law No. 4117 applies to the entire jurisdiction of Brazil. As a federal statute, its provisions are binding across all states and territories of the Federative Republic of Brazil.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 4117 of August 27, 1962, represents a foundational pillar in Brazil's legal and technological development. By instituting the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications, it established the first comprehensive regulatory framework for a sector that was becoming increasingly vital for national integration, economic development, and security. Enacted during the presidency of João Goulart, just two years before the 1964 military coup, the law reflects a period of ambitious modernization efforts in Brazil.

The creation of a national telecommunications code was crucial for organizing the expansion of radio, telephone, and the emerging television networks across Brazil's vast territory. It provided the legal certainty needed for investment and operation in a strategic sector, ensuring that communication services developed under clear rules and governmental oversight. As a statute, it embodies the core principles of the rule of law, making the state's regulations accessible and transparent to all citizens. Its public domain status and availability through official government channels further reinforce the democratic principle that the laws governing the public must be freely accessible to the public.

## Notable For
- **Institution of the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications:** The law is most notable for creating the first unified legal code governing the entire telecommunications sector in Brazil.
- **Promulgation by President João Goulart:** It stands as a significant legislative act from the presidency of João Goulart, a pivotal figure in Brazilian history whose term ended with the 1964 military coup.
- **Foundational Regulatory Framework:** It established the foundational norms and structures for regulating a critical infrastructure sector during a key era of national development and technological adoption.
- **Official Public Accessibility:** The law is distinguished by its free and official availability online at planalto.gov.br, ensuring that citizens and legal professionals have direct access to its full text.
- **Cataloging in Legal Databases:** It is uniquely identified by the Lexml Brazil ID (urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-08-27;4117), which facilitates its precise reference and retrieval in digital legal information systems.
- **Focus of WikiProject Brazilian Laws:** Its inclusion on the focus list of WikiProject Brazilian Laws highlights its recognition as a key subject for editorial curation and its importance within the corpus of Brazilian legislation.

## Body

### Definition and Legal Classification
Law No. 4117 of August 27, 1962, legally titled "Lei nº 4117, de 27 de agosto de 1962," is a Brazilian federal statute. It is formally classified as an "instance of" a statute, a type of legal instrument defined as a formal written document that creates law. A statute is taxonomically a subclass of "written work," "document," and "rule." It serves as the concrete manifestation of statutory law and is the direct result of the legislative process. The law's Wikidata entity is summarized with the simple description: "Brazilian law."

### Purpose and Core Provisions
The singular, explicitly stated purpose of Law No. 4117 is to "INSTITUI O CODIGO BRASILEIRO DE TELECOMUNICAÇÕES" (Institute the Brazilian Code of Telecommunications). This function is captured in the structured property "law_digest" for the entity. The law digest establishes that the statute's primary legal effect is the creation and implementation of a comprehensive code to regulate all forms of telecommunications, including the rules for operation, licensing, and oversight of communication services and infrastructure.

### Historical and Political Context
The law was enacted during a dynamic period in Brazilian history. It was approved and promulgated on August 27, 1962, by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, with President João Goulart serving as the head of state. This places the law's origin less than two years before the military coup of 1964 that would depose Goulart and initiate a two-decade-long military dictatorship. The law was published in Brasília, which had been inaugurated as the federal capital just two years prior, in 1960.

### Geographic and Jurisdictional Scope
The jurisdiction of Law No. 4117 is explicitly Brazil. As a federal law, it applies to the entire territory of the country, which is a federative republic located in South America. Brazil, which declared independence from Portugal on September 7, 1822, is the fifth-largest country in the world by area and operates under the framework of the 1988 Constitution. The law is written in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of the nation.

### Identification, Access, and Metadata
The law is identified through several formal systems and can be accessed publicly through official channels. Key identifiers and access points include:
- **Legal Citation:** The standard legal citation for the law is "Lei nº 4117/1962."
- **Lexml Brazil ID:** The law is assigned the Uniform Resource Name (URN) `urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-08-27;4117` within Brazil's legal information system, Lexml.
- **Official URL:** The full text of the law is hosted by the Brazilian government and is available at `https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4117.htm`.
- **WikiProject:** The law is included on the "on focus list of" WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a Wikimedia project initiative dedicated to organizing and improving content related to Brazilian legislation.

### Structured Legal and Ontological Properties
Data for Law No. 4117 is structured with properties from Wikidata and other academic sources, including:
- **title:** Lei nº 4117, de 27 de agosto de 1962
- **country:** Brazil
- **approved_by:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil (qualifier: João Goulart, point_in_time: 1962-08-27, determination_method: promulgation)
- **instance_of:** statute
- **publication_date:** 1962-08-27
- **place_of_publication:** Brasília
- **applies_to_jurisdiction:** Brazil
- **language_of_work_or_name:** Brazilian Portuguese

### Copyright and Public Domain Status
As a statute, Law No. 4117 falls under the "edict of government doctrine." This legal doctrine, applicable in jurisdictions such as the United States and France, holds that official legal documents—including judicial opinions, administrative rulings, and legislative enactments like statutes—are not copyrightable. Therefore, the law is in the public domain, ensuring that the legal rules it contains are freely owned by and accessible to the public without restriction. In semantic web ontologies, the entity type "statute" is considered an "equivalent class" to `https://schema.org/Legislation`.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-08-27;4117)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=4117&ano=1962&data=27/08/1962&ato=079o3Y61kMVRVT2e8)
3. LexML Brasil