O direito fundamental à busca da felicidade na jurisprudência dos Tribunais Superiores no Brasil

Abstract

This article examines the right to the pursuit of happiness as an implicit fundamental right within the Brazilian legal system. The study begins with an analysis of international documents that enshrine this right as a universal ideal, tracing its historical development from the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776) to contemporary documents issued by the United Nations (UN). It then discusses how the Brazilian legal system, especially the Federal Constitution of 1988, allows for the derivation of this right through axiological and systematic interpretation, based on principles such as human dignity and the fundamental objectives of the Republic, as well as the protection of individual and collective well-being. The research employs a qualitative methodology, with an exploratory approach, using bibliographic and documentary review. Doctrinal analysis reveals that the right to the pursuit of happiness encompasses a negative dimension (individual freedom) and a positive dimension (the need for public policies that promote well-being). The jurisprudence of the Federal Supreme Court and the Superior Court of Justice is analyzed to demonstrate how this right has been used as a hermeneutic vector and a basis for judicial decisions, usually invoked as a corollary of the principle of human dignity. Finally, the article proposes criteria for the concrete application of this right, in order to avoid its trivialization. It concludes that, although not explicitly stated, the right to the pursuit of happiness should be recognized as a fundamental right, with normative and practical relevance, to ensure the realization of existential projects.