Judicial pluralism and violence against women: case study

In this essay, we present research results from studies on the social efficacy of the Maria da Penha Law in the municipality of Vitória da Conquista in the state of Bahia, Brazil, vis-à-vis its applicability by the state apparatus for the protection of women - Specialized Police Stations to Attend to Women (in Portuguese, Delegacia Especializada no Atendimento à Mulher or DEAM) and criminal judicial authorities – in particular, with regard to the antagonistic approach toissues of conflict resolution, which leads to an instrumental inefficacy of the judicial system, when faced with specific collective conflicts. In the analysis that follows, we mobilize the theory of Juridical Pluralism. Based on investigations into the demand for new rights and in light of the monist crisis of the state, especially the instrumental inefficacy of the Judicial Branch as identified in the empirical research into the modus operandi of state agencies for the protection of women, we have verified a degree of inertia of the formal criminal justice system in responding to the procedural demands pertaining to Domestic and Family Violence (in Portuguese, Violencia Doméstica e Familiar, or VDF) against women, and herein lies the main reason for inquiring into the causes for this juridical problem.