The Superior Court of Justice (STJ) ruled today (5) that the Maria da Penha Law can be applied to protect transsexual women. The decision is valid only for the res judicata, but it can set a precedent to be applied to other cases that are being processed in the Judiciary throughout the country. 
The case was judged by the Sixth Panel of the Court, based on an appeal against a decision of the first instance of the Justice of São Paulo that rejected the application of the rule, as it understood that the law does not cover situations involving gender identity, that is, benefiting people who identify as women.
Created in 2006, the Maria da Penha Law created mechanisms to curb domestic violence against women, establishing protective measures for distancing from family life, creating domestic violence judgments and measures to assist victims.
