An important court decision that extends the protection, in this case indirect, of consumers, by recognizing that retailers operating on marketplace platforms can discuss issues related to the sale of products.
TJSP (Court of Appeals of the State of São Paulo) decision establishes consumer relationship between retailer and marketplace.
In a decision handed down by the 1st Civil Court of the Judicial District of Assis, which was ratified by the 27th Chamber of Private Law of the Court of Appeals of São Paulo, the relationship between a retailer and a marketplace was considered to be a consumer relationship, adopting the mitigated finalist theory for individuals or legal entities that are not the final recipient of the product or service, when they are in a vulnerable position vis-à-vis the supplier.
In the case in question, a retailer who uses Mercado Pago’s services to sell its products filed a lawsuit against the marketplace, claiming that its account had been hacked and blocked, when the attacker changed the password and data, making several withdrawals and payments. It pointed out that the platform had been slow to adopt injunctive measures, acting only after two days, when it blocked its account. The retailer went on to say that only after a month of all the trouble did it receive a deposit in the amount of R$10,291.00, which does not correspond to 1/3 of the loss incurred.
The lawsuit was upheld, recognizing the consumer relationship between the parties, “since the plaintiff is a user of the Mercado Livre and Mercado Pago service, as a service provider to third parties who purchase their products, in relation to the defendants, there is a clear asymmetry in the legal relationship, both procedurally and materially, especially concerning the disparity in information on occurrences and the security of the system.”
For further information, please contact Mrs. Beatricce Martuscelli Motta, tel. (11) 99123-4671 or (beatricce.martuscelli@ronaldomartins.adv.br), Civil Area of RONALDO MARTINS & Advogados
