Lawyer Fábio Prieto de Souza has resumed his position as a partner at Velloza Advogados, in the Strategic Consulting and Legal Advisory practice, after stepping down as Secretary of Justice and Citizenship of the State of São Paulo.
With more than 45 years of experience in the legal profession, spanning private practice as well as service in the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the judiciary, Prieto has held prominent positions in the government of the State of São Paulo, most recently serving as Secretary of Justice and Citizenship from January 2023 to January 2026.
Drawing on his extensive experience in both the public and private sectors, he will provide strategic legal consulting focused on decision-making and risk analysis, particularly in the prevention and resolution of disputes.
“Despite all my years in the legal profession, I continue to cultivate a curious mindset, which has always enabled me to approach matters with a fresh perspective and develop legal strategies in a constantly evolving social and business environment. At Velloza Advogados, I aim to transform the experience I have accumulated as a lawyer, prosecutor, judge and public official into effective advice for the firm’s clients.”
Prieto has built a distinguished professional career, with recognised expertise across several key areas of law and leadership roles within Brazil’s legal institutions.
Recognised as one of the most outstanding jurists of his generation
After serving as a federal judge in the states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul, he was appointed a federal appellate judge at the age of 36 on the basis of professional merit. For more than two decades, he served as a member of the Federal Regional Court of the 3rd Region (TRF-3), the largest federal appellate court in the country, headquartered in São Paulo.
He became the youngest president in the history of the TRF-3, and also served as corregidor, president of the Special Body responsible for administrative matters and the adjudication of mandado de segurança actions, as well as president of three specialised chambers of the court.
Recognised as one of the leading jurists of his generation, Prieto issued rulings in areas including tax, criminal and administrative law, privatisations, public contracts, banking and capital markets regulation, competition and consumer law, public tenders, tax enforcement proceedings, expropriations, possessory actions and administrative misconduct, among other matters.
Within the Electoral Justice system, he served three terms as both full and substitute judge of the Regional Electoral Court of São Paulo.
Earlier in his career, he worked for five years in the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the State of São Paulo, acting in both civil and criminal prosecution offices in the capital and in regional jurisdictions. At the age of 27, he won first place in the “Best Forensic Argumentation” competition, a long-standing intellectual tradition among prosecutors in the state.
Prieto also has extensive experience serving on boards and collegiate bodies. In addition to roles held within the São Paulo state government, he served as an adviser to the Public Ethics Commission of the Presidency of the Republic and to the National Council of Justice. At the TRF-3, he was a council member and chaired both the Judicial Council and the Administrative Council.
