Lawsuits and moral damages

The handling of proceedings, or investigations, is something very serious and impactful in people's lives. In general, for numerous types of proceedings, only the existence of mere indications is required for them to proceed, and of even slighter indications for opening an investigation against someone. There is a burden inherent to citizenship of bearing the risks arising from the judicial and investigatory system. The relevant question to be examined concerns the risk of instrumentalization of institutions in the political game or in economic competition. Unreasonable accusations, without the slightest sense, must be curbed by the system, to avoid abuses and deviations in the use of republican institutions for unavowable ends. This is an interesting field for strengthening the principle of accountability of public agents and of those who formulate reports of offenses to oversight authorities. It is not enough to file a police report to give an air of veracity to information; it is important to verify its reasonableness. For that reason, there is increasing concern with the problem of false accusation, or institutionalized slander. It can bury the honor of public figures or even of those who act strictly in the private sphere.

There is a delicate balance between the fundamental rights to free information, freedom of the press and free investigation, which demand autonomous institutions capable of exercising investigative powers, and the rights to honor, the presumption of innocence and equal treatment before the public authorities. Institutions must hold prerogatives and spaces for margins of error in investigations and proceedings, but such margins are not unlimited. Reasonableness, reasoned decisions and egalitarian criteria must be demanded, prohibiting arbitrariness, persecution and the breach of impersonality.

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