Takeaway: The 4th Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) has ruled that internet service providers, such as YouTube, are entitled to remove content and channels on their own initiative when they identify violations of the law or of their terms of service, provided that such actions do not constitute abuse or infringe upon users’ rights.
In the lawsuit (appeal 2.294.622), users attempted to recover deleted channels by claiming that the platform could only delete videos without a court order in cases involving nudity or sexual content.
The STJ overturned this understanding, stating that companies can and must exercise their internal compliance to ensure adherence to the law and their own rules of use. In the analyzed case, the removal was particularly justified by direct copyright infringement.
The MAC Advogados team closely monitors developments in Digital Law and Intellectual Property within the higher courts, assisting companies in managing copyrights, and defending against litigation involving digital platforms.