A Brazilian judge has excluded influencers Virginia Fonseca, Deolane Bezerra and Carlinhos Maia from a lawsuit filed by a bettor who claims their social media posts contributed to his developing compulsive gambling disorder.
The ruling found that the three influencers and two payment intermediary companies named in the case lacked legal standing to be sued in it.
In his reasoning, the judge said the payment intermediaries had no direct contractual relationship with the plaintiff and simply provided financial services.
As for the influencers, he found they posted content on social media without being part of the core legal relationship at the center of the betting dispute. The ruling dismissed the case against these parties without addressing whether the plaintiff's allegations are true or whether the influencers bear any civil liability, and can still be appealed to the São Paulo Court of Justice, which could revisit the standing question.
The case continues against one of the remaining defendant companies named in the original filing.
The judge also denied the plaintiff's request for free legal aid, a benefit reserved under the Constitution and Brazil's Civil Procedure Code for those unable to afford court costs and legal fees.
The judge noted the plaintiff himself described moving substantial sums and losing more than BR100,000 ($19,673) in bets, circumstances he said reveal financial capacity incompatible with the legal threshold for aid.
Recently, Brazil's Public Prosecutor's Office in the Federal District (MPDFT) requested advertising contracts signed between Blaze and football star Neymar Jr and influencer Virginia Fonseca.
The Federal District Court of Justice has previously ruled, in a separate case, that Fonseca's posts about travel, family or daily life remain advertising when sponsorship sits behind the content
