Reduction in leniency fine may pave the way for J&F to request the return of already paid amounts

The court decision ordering the reduction of the R$ 10.3 billion fine stipulated in the leniency agreement of J&F leaves uncertain the fate of the money already paid by the company. The new fine amount will still be calculated in the process - possibly by judicial experts. J&F estimates that the amount will be reduced to R$ 1 billion. But since 2017, when it closed the agreement, the company has paid R$ 2.9 billion. It has been found that J&F has not yet decided whether to request the return of the surplus if, in fact, the official calculations reach the same results expected by the company. Any move depends on the liquidation of the sentence by the Justice, a phase in which the exact amount will be determined in the process, which has not yet been done. The Federal Public Ministry (MPF) may appeal the decision, which tends to delay the outcome of the action. A judicial order to compel the Union to return values paid from leniency would be unprecedented. Legal experts with ...