The Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia () in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

is the highest judicial body in civil and penal matters and issues of criminal and civil procedure in

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. The

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

consists of twenty three judges, elected by the same institution in list conformed by the Superior Council of the Judiciary for individual terms of eight years. The court meets at the Palace of Justice in the Bolívar Square of

History

After the Colombian first declaration of independence from

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

on 20 July 1810, a number of independent States like

Tunja Tunja () is a municipality and city on the Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes, in the region known as the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, 130 km northeast of Bogotá. In 2018 the municipality had a population of 172,548. It is the capital of B ...

(1811),

Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch. Antioquia may also refer to: * Antioquia Department Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...

(1812),

Cartagena de Indias Cartagena ( ), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Region of Colombia, Caribbean Coast Region, along the Caribbean Sea. Cartagena's past ...

(1812) and Cundinamarca (1812) were established. Each State had its own body in charge of the administration of justice. Later, when these States established the (

United Provinces of New Granada The United Provinces of New Granada was a country in South America from 1810 to 1816, a period known in Colombian history as '' la Patria Boba'' ("the Foolish Fatherland"). It was formed from areas of the New Kingdom of Granada, roughly corres ...

), on 23 September 1814, the ' (High Tribunal of Justice) was established. In 1819, the Republic of Colombia (the

Gran Colombia Gran Colombia (, "Great Colombia"), also known as Greater Colombia and officially the Republic of Colombia (Spanish language, Spanish: ''República de Colombia''), was a state that encompassed much of northern South America and parts of Central ...

) was born. A Court was created according to the provisions its Constitution of 30 August 1821, named ' (High Court of Justice). In 1830, the Gran Colombia was dissolved and the

Republic of New Granada The Republic of New Granada was a Centralism, centralist unitary republic consisting primarily of present-day Colombia and Panama with smaller portions of today's Costa Rica, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru and Brazil that existed from 1831 to 1858. ...

was formed. As per the provisions of its Constitution of 29 February 1832, the (Supreme Court of Justice) was established. On 20 May 1853, it became the ' (Supreme Court of the Nation). In 1858, the

Grenadine Confederation The Granadine Confederation () was a short-lived federal republic established in 1858 as a result of a constitutional change replacing the Republic of New Granada. It consisted of the present-day nations of Colombia and Panama and parts of northw ...

was founded. On adoption of its Constitution of 22 May 1858, the ' (Supreme Court) became the body in charge of the administration of justice. In 1863, the Grenadine Confederation was replaced by the ' (

United States of Colombia The United States of Colombia () was the name adopted in 1863 by the for the Granadine Confederation, after years of civil war. Colombia became a federal state itself composed of nine "sovereign states.” It comprised the present-day nat ...

). On adoption of its Constitution of 8 May 1863, the ' (Supreme Federal Court) was established. Finally, after the establishment of the ' (

Republic of Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuela to the east and northeast ...

) and on adoption of its Constitution of 4 August 1886, the body was renamed as the present, the ' (Supreme Court of Justice) on 3 September 1886. Its first President was Rito Antonio Martínez. In 1985 in the

Palace of Justice siege The Palace of Justice siege was a 1985 attack on the Supreme Court of Colombia, in which members of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group took over the Palace of Justice in Bogotá and held the Supreme Court hostage, intending to hold a trial agai ...

, members of the

M-19 M19, M.19, or M-19 most commonly refers to: * May 19th Communist Organization (M19), an American far-left female-led terrorist group active during the 1970s–1980s * 19th of April Movement (M-19), a former Colombian guerrilla movement and political ...

guerrilla group took over the Palace of Justice, and held the Supreme Court

hostage A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized—such as a relative, employer, law enforcement, or government—to act, o ...

, intending to put

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Belisario Betancur Belisario Betancur Cuartas (4 February 1923 – 7 December 2018) was a Colombian politician who served as the List of Presidents of Colombia, 26th President of Colombia from 1982 to 1986. He was a member of the Colombian Conservative Party. His ...

on trial. Hours later, after a military raid, the incident left all the rebels and 11 of the 25 Supreme Court Justices dead.

Current Judges

*President: Luis Antonio Hernández Barbosa *Vice-president: Aroldo Wilson Quiroz Monsalvo

Civil and Agrarian Cassation Chamber

*President: Luis Armando Tolosa Villabona *Hilda González Neira *Aroldo Wilson Quiroz Monsalvo *Francisco Ternera Barrios *Álvaro Fernando García Restrepo *Luis Alonso Rico Puerta *Octavio Augusto Tejeiro Duque

Labor Cassation Chamber

*President: Fernando Castillo Cadena *Jorge Mauricio Burgos *Rigoberto Echeverri Bueno *Clara Cecilia Dueñas Quevedo *Luis Gabriel Miranda Buelvas *Jorge Luis Quiroz *Gerardo Botero Zuluaga

Penal Cassation Chamber

*President: Luis Antonio Hernández Barbosa *Eyder Patiño Cabrera *Luis Guillermo Salazar Otero *Fernando Alberto Castro Caballero *Gustavo Malo Fernández *Patricia Salazar Cuéllar *José Francisco Acuña Vizcaya *José Luis Barceló Camacho * Eugenio Fernández Carlier

References

Colombian Judicial Branch of Power
Margot Hernandez
Colombian Judicial Branch of power; judges

External links

The Supreme Court of Colombia website
{{Authority control Constitutional law

Government buildings in Colombia 1886 establishments in Colombia Courts and tribunals established in 1886