A majority of the five-member panel of Brazil's Supreme Court voted on Monday to support Justice Alexandre de Moraes' decision to shut down social media platform X in the country for failing to adhere to local regulations. Justices Flavio Dino and Cristiano Zanin joined Moraes, creating a majority even before Justices Luiz Fux and Carmen Lucia cast their votes. X was removed from Brazil, one of its biggest markets, early Saturday morning following Moraes' ruling, after the platform failed to appoint a legal representative in Brazil by a court-imposed deadline as mandated by local law. Moraes and X owner Elon Musk have been engaged in a protracted dispute since X was ordered to block accounts involved in investigations into alleged dissemination of misinformation and hate speech.
"It is unacceptable for a company to operate within a country's borders while attempting to dictate which rules should be enforced," Justice Dino stated in support of Moraes. "A party that deliberately disregards court rulings seems to place itself above the law, potentially becoming a lawbreaker."
