The judicialization of the harbor: the legicentrism in the statute of the judge

Abstract

This article investigates the social role of the judges in the judicialization of the revitalization of Mauá harbor in Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. Expectations as to the actions of the judge in this conflict structured social practices mobilized by the people involved in the conflict. The analysis of the empirical material indicated that the social movements expect the judge to act according to the operational concept of “social legicentrism”, in which the judge is perceived as an enforcer of the law and protector of the unassisted people, those who cannot access the decision-making spaces of the State administrative policy. This notion places the magistrates in face of social tensions and expectations which are often not met.