(Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk appointed a legal representative for X in Brazil on Friday, seeking to comply with a deadline imposed by the Supreme Court and end a ban on the social-media platform in the country, CNN Brasil reported.
The company appointed Rachel de Oliveira Villa Nova Conceicao to represent it in Latin America’s largest economy, according to CNN Brasil and other outlets. X, controlled by the billionaire businessman, had until now resisted abiding by orders from the court.
The appointment of a legal representative doesn’t guarantee the return to normal business in Brazil by the company previously known as Twitter, which has been banned from operating in the country since Aug. 30.
To resume operations, X must follow through on a court order to block some accounts allegedly responsible for disseminating hate speech and fake news.
X told Brazil’s Supreme Court on Wednesday that it had appointed two attorneys to represent it in the country. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, however, gave the company 24 hours to prove there was someone working on its behalf. The deadline ended Friday at 9:29 p.m. local time, according to the court.
In April, Musk pledged to defy orders from Moraes, who is spearheading a judicial campaign against hate speech and fake news, to suspend certain accounts in the country. The billionaire accused the judge of censorship, while Moraes opened a criminal inquiry into Musk and accused him of spreading disinformation.
This week the platform abruptly became accessible to Brazilian users after an automatic update switched the way it directs traffic, the country’s association of internet providers said.
Moraes ordered X to restore a block on its site Thursday or face fines of 5 million reais ($907,000) per day, accusing it of attempting to “disobey” the court. A spokesperson for X said late Wednesday that a change to its network provider following the ban had caused an “inadvertent and temporary service restoration to Brazilian users.”
Brazil’s telecommunications watchdog said in a statement Thursday that the conduct of X demonstrates “deliberate intention to disregard the order of the Supreme Court” and that “any new attempts to circumvent the block will merit appropriate measures” from the regulatory agency.
The law firm hired by X said in a statement that “clarifications and information in response to Moraes’ order” were presented to the court on Friday.
--With assistance from Jose Orozco.
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