TheLegal500 brings an exclusive interview with Brazilian jurist Fábio Medina Osório, founder of the International Institute for State Law Studies (IIEDE), in which he presents IIEDE's greatest achievements and discusses the Institute's plans for the future. Check it out!  

1) 2023 marked the 20th anniversary of the International Institute for State Law Studies (IIEDE). What is your perspective when looking back on the IIEDE's history?

A: The Institute was born from a joint idea that Prof. Humberto Ávila and I had in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, in the early 2000s. Based on this idea, we brought together numerous professors and academics and Professor Eduardo García de Enterría from Spain, whose participation was decisive, so much so that a large part of the founding professors and lecturers came precisely from Spain and from the García de Enterría School of Lecturers. For the inauguration of the Institute, we conceived and held the seminar "The New State Law", on which occasion Prof. García de Enterría was awarded an honorary doctorate, the first honorary doctorate he received in Brazil. That seminar was attended by nearly 600 people, including speakers such as Prof. Luis Roberto Barroso and Justice Gilmar Mendes, among other illustrious speakers. Since then, the Institute has held numerous successful national and international seminars. The Institute's central feature is its dialog with civil society.  

2) The Institute is dedicated to the study of State Law. What is the scope of this area of law?

A: The International Institute for State Law Studies encompasses a wide range of very different legal disciplines. Most of the Institute's professors are constitutional, administrative and tax law experts. However, the State exercises its power through multiple legal disciplines. In this sense, the Institute is also open to the study of criminal law and other legal disciplines that have a bearing on matters related to state power. Capital market law, banking law, competition law and consumer law are all legal disciplines that have interfaces with administrative sanctions law. These matters, which relate to the State's power to impose sanctions, have been the subject of studies and seminars within the Institute. The perspective of state law must be considered as comprehensively as possible.  

3) What are IIEDE's prospects for the next ten years?

A: We intend to expand our dialog with the private sector and universities, along the lines of the agreements we already have with institutions like the CVM (Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission). We also plan to create digital magazines to disseminate the intellectual work of IIEDE's collaborators. Another project is to deepen the research groups in order to collaborate with civil society and institutions, including assisting with draft legislation. IIEDE must increasingly become a knowledge production powerhouse for the improvement of institutions.