Abstract

This article shows the descriptive research results, based on the deductive method and extensive bibliographical review, about the practical application of Law No. 13,431/2017 in Brazil, which established a system of guarantees for the rights of child victims or witnesses of violence. According to this law, children began to be heard in the courts through a protective listening procedure named Special Testimony. The history of approval of this law, the development of its application over the five years of its validity, the challenges for the complete implementation of the new law in Brazilian forensic practice and the perspectives for the future will be analyzed.