CURITIBA, Brazil (AP) — Lawyers for Brazil's former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva have begun legal procedures requesting his release from prison.

Da Silva's defense team filed the request Friday in a court in Curitiba, where the former leader has been detained since April 2018 after being convicted of corruption.

The move follows a Supreme Court decision late Thursday that a person can be imprisoned only after all appeals to higher courts have been exhausted.

Da Silva is appealing the case that put him behind bars. The case is related to the alleged purchase of a beachfront apartment in Sao Paulo state.

Da Silva, who governed from 2003 to 2010, says the case against him was politically motivated.

He was unable to run in the 2018 presidential election because of his conviction.