By Leonardo Neri

On March 11, 2021, the Consumer Defense Code completes 30 years in force, having proven itself, over that time, to be an important legal instrument.

With the entry into force of the current Federal Constitution in 1988, state protection of consumers began to be treated as a fundamental right, provided for in art. 5, item XXXII. Thus, in 1990, Law No. 8,078, or the Consumer Protection Code (CDC), was created as a major historical milestone, establishing principles, guarantees and rights for consumers, regulating commercial practices and, mainly, establishing penalties, including criminal penalties, for the practice of illicit acts by suppliers.

It is noteworthy that the creation of the CDC generated, and still generates, many changes and many challenges in the legal sphere, being the object of constant adaptation to current consumer practices, in order to guarantee its greater effectiveness.

However, despite the long period since its creation, the principles and guarantees established by the CDC are still very current, and it is considered one of the most advanced laws in the world, and can even be considered somewhat visionary. One of the greatest examples of this is the creation of the right to regret a purchase before the digital consumption era, allowing consumers to regret purchases made outside the establishment, without incurring any costs.

The right to regret has proven to be a great tool for consumers and suppliers, especially given the growth of the e-commerce segment, which represents a large proportion of current consumer relations.

Not only innovative, the CDC has a relevant characteristic of awareness-raising legislation, having proven to be one of the most accessed and known laws by the legally lay population, who are interested in knowing and understanding their rights when it comes to consumer relations.

This collective awareness has resulted in the inevitable increase in state supervision, through consumer protection agencies, which were created over the last 30 years, and the consequent reduction in practices that are harmful to consumers, which is the real objective of the legislation.