Brazil's Best Counsel 2020 - Chapter Opening: Government Relations

Government relations are chan­ging in Brazil and around the world. Part of this change comes from within. Government relations professionals and academics are studying the subject in a more sophisticated manner, taking it beyond a concept approach to specific debates on method, strategy and tactics.

Transformation also derives from changes within governments them­selves and the way they function. There are new ways of bringing to­gether the private and public sec­tors as well as new ways of advoca­ting for legitimate interests.

Throughout all this, government relations are proving to be an es­sential tool to defend and ensure democracy in the modern state.

Government relations, lobbying and advocacy professionals work by providing decision-makers with information and public poli­cy solutions on social and indus­try-specific issues. They search for ways to classify and qualify relevant information to gua­rantee that the proposed solutions address corresponding problems. In this scenario, it is clear that go­vernment relations professionals have a social task while represen­ting civil society before govern­mental authorities.

Moreover, government relations professionals exert control over democracy in two ways: (i) they share data with decision-makers in order to minimize asymme­trical information; and (ii) they constantly monitor the actions of governments to avoid inade­quate and untimely measures being taken.

This sort of control is com­monplace in modern democracies around the world, especially in Brazil. An increa­sing number of foreign agents, demagogues, populists and influen­cers have been testing the foundations of democratic ins­titutions, as has been seen in the United States and France recently. In such an environment the sys­tem of checks and balances plays a fundamental role in safeguarding democracy, testing the instruments of horizontal, social and even ver­tical accountability on an every­day basis. In addition to preser­ving democracy, the goal is always to prevent excesses and abuse of power by anyone, anywhere.

With the rise of the internet and social media, it is increasingly difficult to prevent such abuses. Increasingly worrisome is the in­fluence of social and traditional media in elections, with an astoni­shing volume of information being exchanged at ever greater speed and which is often generated by foreign agents.

Government relations are an im­portant part of this system of checks and balances. Social and sectorial representatives emerge as natural political leaders to coo­perate and control excesses. These actors are key for maintaining governability and stability.

Likewise, go­vernment rela­tions that are carried out in an ethical and transparent manner contribute to this stability, brin­ging social stakeholders closer to decision-makers and ensuring in­dividual and sectorial freedom.

Social and political leaders have the fundamental role of promo­ting governmental and institutio­nal stability, while government relations and advocacy practices reveal their vital importance to the modern state as an essential tool for maintaining and stren­gthening democracy.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Leandro Modesto Coimbra: Founding partner. Specialist in State, Governmentand Public Policies from the Universidade de Brasília (UnB). Leandro has authored several academic articles and papers on lobbying, advocacy and Government Relations in Brazil.

E-mail: lmodesto@advocacybrasil.adv.br  Phone: +55 61 99211-5060

Marcos Joaquim Gonçalves Alves: Founding partner. Specialist in Tax Law andconsultant for the Special Committee of Tax Law of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) as well as member in the Steering Committee of the Centro de Estudos das Sociedades de Advogados (CESA).

E-mail: mjalves@mjab.adv.br  Phone: +55 61 98173-7063

Fernanda Burle: Founding partner. Holds an MBA in Government Relations from Fundação Getulio Vargas and a Master’s in International Relations from the Université de Genève. Fernanda is Government Relations Coordinator at CESA and Vice-President of the Governmental and Institutional Relations Committee of OAB/DF.

E-mail: fernandaburle@advocacybrasil.adv.br  Phone: +55 61 98105-0729