definition of crimes ofresponsibility, there is no impediment to application of Law no.1,079, passedby the Congress on 04.10.50, more than 48 years prior to promulgation of theFederal Constitution.The decision issued by the Supreme Court was all the more surprisingin the sense that, once he has been considered guilty, the punishment to beimposed on the President of the Republic is defined in the Federal Constitution(article 52, paragraph), while the crime upon which the accusation is based isthat specified in a lesser law promulgated more than 48 years ago or, moreprecisely, in article 5 to 10 of Law no.1,079, dated 04.10.50. Thus, we havethe following situation: the crimes upon which the accusation is based aredefined in less important legislation approved by a simple majority if theCongress, while the sanctions are specified in the nations constitution.Consequently, once the Chief Federal Legal Advisor isexcluded, all other public agents to be tried before the Federal Senate will bejudged according to the terms of Law no. 1,079/50.Here, one should stress that the office of the Chief FederalLegal Advisor is excluded for the simple reason that this position, whichcorresponds to the chief legal advisor of the President of the Republic, wasintroduced with the 1988 Constitution and, therefore, did not exist when Lawno. 1,079/50 was passed. Though the Brazilian Constitution was promulgated morethan ten years ago, no legislation has been passed in the intervening perioddealing with impeachment of the Chief Federal Legal Advisory. Thus, should hebe charged with the crime of responsibility, there is no way in which, accordingto Brazilian legislation, he could possibly be tried before the Federal Senateor any other entity for that matter.According to Law no. 1,079/50, any Brazilian citizen entitledto full civil and political rights is qualified to denounce a public authoritybefore the Federal Senate. However, the denunciation must be received andexamined while the accused has not definitely left office. Should the office bevacant for any reason whatsoever, including resignation or dismissal from officeupon request, the process of impeachment cannot be initiated no matter what thegravity of the accusations.In the case of the Ministers of the Federal Supreme Court andthe Attorney General of the Republic, the denunciation is submitted directly tothe Federal Senate with no need for examination by the Federal Chamber ofDeputies. In this specific case, there is no need for a Committee ofAccusation, since the denouncing party would be called upon to sustain theaccusation before the Senate.In case involving accusations against the President, VicePresident and Ministers of State, the denunciation must first be submitted tothe Federal Chamber of Deputies. That House of Congress is charged withexamining the denunciation of crimes of responsibility and determining whetherit is or is not admissible. The members of the full House are calledindividually by name and must announce their acceptance or rejection of the denunciation.During this stage of the process, the accused is not entitled to defense, sincethe House is not sitting in judgment of the accused but rather deciding whetheror not there are grounds for a trial.Once the denunciation has been accepted by two thirds of theChamber of Deputies, the entire process, including the accusation and all otherdocuments