OAB-RJ appoints new head of its Lottery Gaming Commission through 2027

Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro bar association has put a new lawyer in charge of its lottery gaming committee, and the timing matters: the agenda now includes advertising restrictions in Rio, video lottery terminals (VLTs), and the growing compliance load around responsible gambling. For PSPs and operators, this is the kind of local regulatory fight that can turn into practical payments friction fast.

1. On Monday, August 3, OAB-RJ president Ana Tereza Basílio appointed lawyer João Rachid da Motta (OAB/RJ 218.447) as president of the Section’s Commission of Lottery Gaming Law. His mandate runs until December 31, 2027, within the 2025/2027 term.
2. He replaces Paulo Horn, who stepped down from the commission presidency to run for a seat in the Rio de Janeiro state legislature.
3. Rachid da Motta said the regulatory agenda is his priority, pointing to “the decree that restricts advertising of betting in the city” and the dispute over banning video lottery terminals. He also said he wants to reinforce responsible gambling and the fight against gambling disorder.
4. His first move was to send a letter to the OAB-RJ president proposing a seminar titled Loterias e Apostas em Debate: Regulação, Publicidade e Segurança Jurídica. According to Rachid da Motta, OAB-RJ leadership has already approved the proposal.
5. The seminar would be split into three panels. The first would cover responsible gambling and prevention of gambling disorder, anchored in obligations under Law 14.790/2023 and Portaria SPA/MF 827/2024, including identifying abusive patterns, setting operational limits, issuing alerts, offering self-exclusion tools, and recognizing the nullity of bets placed by people diagnosed with gambling disorder.
6. The second panel would examine Decreto Rio nº 58.274, which banned advertising for betting platforms in public spaces, street furniture, and outdoor media in the city. The letter argues that fixed-odds betting is a lottery activity under the exclusive competence of the Union, under Article 22, item XX, of the Federal Constitution, and that sector advertising is already governed by Annex X of CONAR’s Brazilian Advertising Self-Regulation Code.

The practical point for high-risk operators is simple: Brazil’s federal framework is still being tested against state and municipal rules, and Rio is one of the places where that friction is most visible. When advertising limits, VLT disputes, and responsible-gambling obligations end up in the same forum, payments, compliance, and acquisition partners all have to watch the local reading of the rules very closely.