Courts of Auditors and consensuality: reflections from the Brazilian experience

Abstract

This article examines the incorporation of consensual mechanisms into external public auditing through the Brazilian experience of the Secretariat for Consensual Solutions and Conflict Prevention (SecexConsenso), established within the Federal Court of Accounts (Tribunal de Contas da União – TCU). Considering the contemporary transformation of oversight functions in increasingly complex administrative relationships, the study analyses consensuality as an instrument for improving both public decision-making and external control. It describes the institutional framework of SecexConsenso, discusses the constitutional controversy currently pending before the Brazilian Supreme Federal Court, and explores the boundaries between administrative action and oversight activity. The article argues that consensual mechanisms do not modify the constitutional allocation of powers entrusted to Courts of Accounts; rather, they enhance institutional capacity to understand complex disputes, organize relevant information and produce decisions better aligned with the purposes of external control.