Palmeiras board member loses case against Leila after council row | OneFootball

On December 16, the meeting of Palmeiras’ Deliberative Council was marked by an argument and confusion between council member José Corona Neto and president Leila Pereira.

Palmeiras council member loses lawsuit against Leila Pereira

The council member had filed a lawsuit in São Paulo’s Special Civil Court against the Verdão president, seeking R$ 20,000 in moral damages.

Corona argued that he was offended by Leila during the regular meeting of the club’s Deliberative Council, held on December 16, 2025. In his account, the council member said he criticized the sports management and investments in football, and the president responded with personal attacks, calling him, among other terms, “coward,” “failure,” and “unbalanced.”

NOSSO PALESTRA has learned that Judge Fernando Salles Amaral, of the 1st Division of the Special Civil Court at the Central Vergueiro courthouse, dismissed José Corona Neto’s claim on the grounds that “the strain resulting from the mutual altercation that occurred in a space of political dispute does not go beyond the realm of mere annoyance and is therefore incapable of generating an obligation to compensate under private law”.

The decision may be appealed.

See excerpts from the ruling:

An analysis of the meeting minutes reveals that the plaintiff, speaking as a council member, opened the debate by accusing the management led by the defendant of being wasteful and incompetent, alleging that the players signed were mediocre and that those who do not understand football should stay at home, also describing the administrative conduct as immoral and amoral (Event 1 and Event 25).

It is noted that the defendant’s statement, which used the words described in the initial complaint, occurred in a subsequent act and in direct response to the accusations made by the plaintiff minutes earlier in the same session (Event 1). Indeed, it is clear that the defendant’s remarks constituted a verbal reaction to the claimant’s attacks against her performance and management ability, with the clash unfolding amid a dynamic of heightened tempers and political antagonism (Event 25).

Recall the case

NP had access to the minutes of Palmeiras’ Deliberative Council meeting on which the lawsuit is based. In the document, José Corona Neto criticizes the team’s sporting performance, the volume of spending on signings, and the club’s political leadership. Next, Leila Pereira’s response records the expressions pointed out by the council member as offensive and which came to support the compensation claim filed in court.

According to the plaintiff, the statements went beyond the scope of internal political debate and harmed his honor, with repercussions within the club, in his personal circle, and in the sports press. He cited reports from media outlets across the country to support the claim of the episode’s public and negative repercussions.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.