Gilmar Ferreira Mendes is a Brazilian Justice of the Supremo Tribunal Federal, appointed by then President Fernando Henrique Cardoso in 2002. Mendes was the Chief Justice of the Court for the 2008–2010 term. Earlier, he had been the Attorney General from 2000 to 2002.

The Supreme Federal Court is the supreme court of Brazil, serving primarily as the country's Constitutional Court. It is the highest court of law in Brazil for constitutional issues and its rulings cannot be appealed. On cases involving exclusively non-constitutional issues, regarding federal laws, the highest court is, by rule, the Superior Court of Justice.