Law 15.240/2025 recognizes emotional abandonment as a civil offense: a milestone for family law

Piva Advogados
44 minutes ago
3 min read

The emotional presence of parents in their children's lives has always been seen as essential for healthy development. Now, this emotional truth has become a legal norm.

With the publication of Law No. 15,240/2025 on October 29, 2025, emotional abandonment is now expressly recognized as a civil offense, subject to compensation for moral and psychological damages.

The new legislation amends the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA) to include, for the first time, the legal duty to provide emotional support—consolidating an understanding that had already been developed by the jurisprudence of the STJ and the State Courts.

What changes in the law: the duty of affection and civil liability

Law 15.240/2025 included two fundamental provisions in the ECA:

Art. 5, sole paragraph: Any action or omission that violates the fundamental rights of children or adolescents, including cases of emotional abandonment, is now considered unlawful conduct, subject to compensation for damages.
Art. 4, § 2 and § 3: Defines emotional support as a duty of parents, comprising:
- Regular contact and visitation that allow for monitoring the psychological and moral development of the child;
- Guidance and emotional support in times of suffering or difficulty;
- Physical and emotional presence requested by the child or adolescent, whenever possible.

Based on this new wording, affection is no longer just a moral or social value, but has become the subject of concrete legal protection — based on Article 927 of the Civil Code, which imposes the duty to repair any damage resulting from an unlawful act.

Legal recognition of a previously implicit duty

The issue of emotional abandonment gained prominence in the Judiciary more than a decade ago, with landmark decisions such as REsp 1.159.242/SP, in which the STJ recognized the possibility of compensation for failure to fulfill the duty of care and coexistence. However, the absence of express legal provision still generated uncertainty as to its application.

With the new law, the legal duty of affection becomes explicit, eliminating interpretative doubts and strengthening the principle of human dignity (Article 1, III, of the Federal Constitution) and the right to family life (Article 227 of the Federal Constitution). It is, therefore, a normative and civilizational advance that consolidates the protective role of the State in the face of the emotional vulnerability of children and adolescents.

Practical impacts: prevention, responsibility, and awareness

The legislative change does not seek to punish absent love, but to hold emotional neglect legally responsible when it causes concrete damage to the psychological development of the child.

Among the main practical effects of the law, the following stand out:

Expansion of parental responsibility: the duty of cohabitation and affection becomes legally enforceable, not just morally expected.
Legal basis for compensation: children who prove emotional abandonment may seek civil damages for the harm suffered.
Greater incentive for active parenting: the rule reinforces the educational role of presence, dialogue, and emotional care.
Impact on custody, visitation, and child support proceedings: judges may evaluate compliance with emotional support as a relevant factor in their decisions.

More than compensation: a call for family co-responsibility

This legislative advance should be understood as an instrument of prevention and awareness. The law does not impose love, but recognizes the legal importance of affection as an essential part of the comprehensive protection of children and adolescents. Fathers and mothers are not only material providers, but fundamental agents in the emotional and moral development of their children.

Emotional neglect, when repeated and proven, now constitutes an unlawful act —and, as such, generates a duty of reparation and legal consequences.

Guidance from Piva Advogados Associados

The legal recognition of emotional abandonment reinforces the importance of preventive legal guidance and family mediation. In contexts of separation, custody disputes, or parental removal, it is essential that the parties seek balanced solutions accompanied by specialized professionals, preventing emotional conflicts from turning into legal disputes.