# Law No. 4178 of December 11, 1962

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105648466](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105648466)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-4178-of-december-11-1962

## Summary
Law No. 4178 of December 11, 1962 is a Brazilian federal statute that officially extinguished Saturday work in credit establishments. Enacted during the presidency of João Goulart, this law is a formal written legal document published in Brasília and remains part of Brazil's statutory law.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title:** Lei nº 4178, de 11 de dezembro de 1962
- **Enactment Date:** December 11, 1962
- **Approving Authority:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, under President João Goulart
- **Place of Publication:** Brasília
- **Jurisdiction:** Brazil (federal law)
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 4178/1962
- **Instance Of:** Statute (a formal written document that creates law)
- **Main Subject:** Extinction of Saturday work ("Extinção") in credit establishments ("Trabalho")
- **Law Digest:** "EXTINGUE O TRABALHO AOS SABADOS NOS ESTABELECIMENTOS DE CRÉDITO"
- **LexML Brazil ID:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-12-11;4178
- **Full Text URL:** https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4178.htm
- **Wikidata Description:** Brazilian law
- **Wikimedia Focus:** Listed on WikiProject Brazilian Laws

## FAQs
**What does Law No. 4178/1962 regulate?**
This law specifically extinguishes or abolishes the requirement for work on Saturdays in establishments related to credit, such as banks and financial institutions. It represents a labor regulation targeting the financial sector's workweek.

**When and by whom was Law No. 4178 enacted?**
It was enacted on December 11, 1962, and approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, with João Goulart serving as the President at the time of its promulgation.

**Where can the full text of this Brazilian law be accessed?**
The official, complete text is published on the Brazilian federal government's legislative portal at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4178.htm. It is also cataloged in the national LexML system under the identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-12-11;4178.

**How is this law classified in legal and knowledge systems?**
It is classified as an instance of a "statute," which is a formal written document that creates law. In structured data, it is equivalent to the `https://schema.org/Legislation` class and is part of Brazil's corpus of statutory law.

**Is this law still in effect today?**
The provided source material does not specify its current status. Its continued applicability would depend on subsequent amendments, repeals, or superseding legislation within the Brazilian legal system, which is not detailed in the given information.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 4178/1962 is a specific historical labor regulation from early 1960s Brazil, reflecting governmental intervention in working conditions during that period. Its significance lies in its targeted approach to modifying the workweek for a specific economic sector—credit establishments—which would have directly impacted banking hours, employee schedules, and financial operations in Brazil at the time. As a federal statute, it represents the use of legislative power to alter standard employment practices, contributing to the broader tapestry of Brazilian labor law. Understanding such niche statutes helps map the evolution of work regulations and provides concrete examples of how legal systems address sector-specific needs. Its existence in official repositories like the *Planalto* website and the LexML system ensures its preservation as part of the nation's legal heritage, allowing for historical and comparative legal research.

## Notable For
- **Sector-Specific Labor Reform:** It is notable for its precise focus on abolishing Saturday work exclusively within credit establishments, a targeted regulatory measure rather than a broad labor code change.
- **Historical Presidency:** It is directly associated with the presidency of João Goulart, a significant figure in Brazil's political history preceding the 1964 military coup.
- **Statutory Form:** As a formal statute (Lei), it exemplifies the primary legislative instrument used by the Brazilian National Congress to create binding federal law.
- **Digital Preservation:** It is preserved in Brazil's official digital legislative repositories (Planalto.gov.br and LexML), ensuring long-term public access to the original text.
- **WikiProject Inclusion:** It is recognized and cataloged by WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating its inclusion in collaborative efforts to document Brazil's legal corpus.

## Body

### Legal Identity and Classification
Law No. 4178 of December 11, 1962, is formally titled "Lei nº 4178, de 11 de dezembro de 1962." It is an **instance of a statute**, which is defined as a formal written document that creates law, encompassing acts, executive orders, and by-laws. As a statute, it functions as the tangible manifestation of statutory law for this specific regulation. Its legal citation is "Lei nº 4178/1962," and its Wikidata description is simply "Brazilian law." The law is explicitly listed on the focus list of **WikiProject Brazilian Laws**, a Wikimedia collaborative project dedicated to improving coverage of Brazilian legislation.

### Enactment and Approval
The law was **approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil**. The structured data specifies that this approval occurred under the authority of **President João Goulart**, with the point in time of promulgation being **December 11, 1962**. The determination method is recorded as "promulgation." The **place of publication** was **Brasília**, the federal capital. The **publication date** is definitively **1962-12-11**.

### Content and Legal Subject
The core substantive content of the law is captured in its **law_digest**: "EXTINGUE O TRABALHO AOS SABADOS NOS ESTABELECIMENTOS DE CRÉDITO." This translates to "EXTINGUISHES WORK ON SATURDAYS IN CREDIT ESTABLISHMENTS." The **main_subject** property breaks this down into two components: **'extinction'** (stated as "Extinção") and **'work'** (stated as "Trabalho"). Therefore, the law's primary purpose is to terminate or abolish the practice of requiring employees to work on Saturdays within the defined scope of credit institutions.

### Jurisdiction, Language, and Application
The law **applies to the jurisdiction of Brazil**, as it is a federal statute enacted by the Brazilian Congress and signed by the President. The **language_of_work_or_name** is **Brazilian Portuguese**, which is the official language used in the text and for its official citation. It governs a specific sector within the Brazilian economic and legal framework.

### Access, Documentation, and Identifiers
The law is digitally preserved and accessible through official Brazilian government channels. Its primary access point is the URL: **https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l4178.htm**, hosted on the *Planalto* website, which is the official repository for federal legislation. It is also cataloged in the national **LexML Brazil** system with the persistent identifier **urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-12-11;4178**. These systems ensure the text is part of the public record and available for legal reference.

### Context within Brazilian Law
As a statute from 1962, this law exists within a specific historical context of Brazil's legal development. It was enacted during the final years of the Second Brazilian Republic (1946-1964) and shortly before the military coup of 1964. Labor laws from this period often reflected efforts to regulate industrial and commercial relations. While the provided source does not detail the law's subsequent history, its status as a published federal statute means it was, at minimum, part of the *ordenamento jurídico* (legal order) until potentially amended or repealed by a later law. Its classification as a "statute" places it within the same broad category as acts, executive orders, and by-laws, but as a "Lei" (law), it specifically originates from the legislative branch.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1962-12-11;4178)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=4178&ano=1962&data=11/12/1962&ato=741ATTE5kMVRVTe44)
3. LexML Brasil