Chilean Supreme Court

Stairway of access to the Supreme Court, at the Palace of the Courts of Justice of Santiago de Chile.

The Supreme Court of Justice of Chile is the highest jurisdictional body within the courts that make up the Chilean Judiciary. It is made up of 21 members called Ministers, of which one is its President. The Court also has a judicial prosecutor, a secretary, a deputy secretary and eight rapporteurs.

It is at the top of the hierarchical order of the Judiciary, above the Courts of Appeals, the Courts of First Instance, the Courts of Guarantee, the Courts of Oral Criminal Trials and the Special Courts, and it is responsible for the directive superintendence, correctional and economic over all the courts of the Republic of Chile, except the Constitutional Court, the Qualifying Court of Elections and the regional electoral courts.

The Supreme Court of Chile was created by the Political Constitution of 1823 and installed on December 29 of the same year, being one of the oldest institutions of its kind in the world and the oldest in Latin America still in operation. It is headquartered in Santiago de Chile, the capital of the Republic, in the building of the Palace of the Courts of Justice.

History

The first precedent for the creation of a supreme court in Chile can be found in the "Provisional Regulation for the Administration of Justice of 1811" (Provisional Regulation for the establishment, substantiation and term of the resources of notorious injustice, second supplication and other extraordinary ones, of October 4, 1811), which ordered the establishment of a "Supreme Court Judiciary", highlighting the advantage that the resources could be known "in their own country, by magistrates of their own fellow citizens". The Political Constitution of 1818 contemplated a similar figure, calling it "Supreme Judicial Court" (Title V, article 1), while the Political Constitution of 1822 included within its regulations a "Supreme Court of Justice" (article 160).

However, the previous initiatives remained only on paper, creating instead special commissions to hear about the resources that would have been within their competence. For this reason, it cannot be said that such ad hoc commissions or tribunals, "with their extremely narrow sphere of powers, no matter how respectable they may be considered, deserve the title of genuine predecessors of the Supreme Court of Justice".

The election of the Supreme Court of Chile dates back to 1823. The Political Constitution of 1823 created the "Supreme Court of Justice", qualifying it as the "first judicial magistracy of the State" (Article 143), which was to "protect, enforce and claim the other powers for individual and judicial guarantees", made up of 4 ministers, a president, plus a "national attorney" The installation of the Court was verified on December 29 of the same year, its first members being: José Gregorio Argomedo (president), Francisco Antonio Pérez, Gaspar Marín and Lorenzo José Villalón (ministers), and Mariano Egaña (national attorney).). Later, it changed its official name to "Supreme Court", with the Political Constitution of 1828 (article 93). The Political Constitution of 1833 did not contemplate it, limiting itself to leaving to the law the determination of the magistracy in charge of "the directive, correctional and economic superintendence over all the Courts and courts of the Nation, in accordance with the law that determines its organization and attributions" (article 113), maintaining the structure and organization of the courts then in force (derived from the Constitution of 1823 and the "Regulation of Administration of Justice of 1824"), until the dictation of said legal norm.

In 1835, by means of a law, considering the few tasks carried out by the Supreme Court and the overload of work of the Court of Appeals, it was granted jurisdiction of second instance in criminal and finance matters; that is, the knowledge of the appeals was divided between both courts (civil matters were kept by the Court of Appeals).

In 1875, with the Law on the Organization and Attributions of the Courts, the Supreme Court was structured as a court of cassation, granting it jurisdiction to review the judgments of the Courts of Appeals in this way. However, these powers remained pending the issuance of the Codes of Procedures.

Composition

Members of the Supreme Court in 1908.

The Supreme Court – which has the official treatment of "Excellence"– has been composed since 1997 by 21 members – who have the treatment of "Your Honor"–, one of whom is its President and the others are called Ministers, whose order of precedence is determined by seniority. Previously the number of members was 17 in 1988, 16 in 1984, 13 in 1918, 9 in 1902, 7 in 1889 and 5 in 1823.

In general, it is considered that those who access the Supreme Court are judges of great professional or intellectual quality, who have developed an outstanding career within the judiciary. It is often said that to access the Supreme Court you must have joined the Court of Appeals of Santiago. Few escaped this rule, even when the law already contemplated temperaments (for example, the automatic inclusion among the candidates, of the first seniority among the Ministers of the Court of Appeals, whatever their origin).

After a reform (of 1997) the incorporation into the Court of members from outside the Judiciary was admitted. Among the 21 ministers, five of them must be lawyers who are foreign to the administration of justice, so when the Supreme Court must fill a position corresponding to officials of the judicial branch, they form the fifth with judicial personnel and when it must fill a position corresponding to lawyers strangers to the administration of justice, they form the fifth with the lawyers who present themselves for the competition who have at least 15 years of title and provided they have stood out in public or university life.

Currently, seven women are part of the highest court, which is equivalent to 35% of its members, although in the courts of first instance the female judiciary is absolutely common, with 60.1% female judges.

Appointment

The Ministers are appointed by the President of the Republic, with the agreement of the Senate, adopted by two thirds of its members in office, in a session specially called for this purpose. The President can only submit for the approval of the Senate a person drawn from a list of five (one "quina" or "cinquena"), proposed by the same Supreme Court. It is, therefore, a complex form of self-generation of its members or cooptation.

Current members

The Supreme Court is made up of 21 members.

The judicial prosecutor of the Supreme Court is Lya Cabello Abdala. The secretary of the Court is Jorge Sáez Martín and the deputy secretary is Marcelo Doering Carrasco.

Attributions

Interior of the Palace of the Courts of Justice of Santiago, 2006.

The Supreme Court is a collegiate tribunal which, as a general rule, works divided into specialized chambers – with no less than 5 judges each, presided over by the most senior minister, when the President of the Court is not present– and, exceptionally, in full –with the attendance of at least 11 of its members–.

It corresponds to the full Supreme Court:

• To know the appeals that are deducted in cases of misery of the persons to whom the second, third and fourth subparagraphs of article 58 of the Political Constitution apply;
• Know second instance, of the amovility trials first passed by the Courts of Appeal or by the President of the Supreme Court, followed against judges of letters or Ministers of Appeals Courts, respectively;
• To exercise the administrative, disciplinary and economic powers assigned to it by law, without prejudice to those accorded to the chambers in matters of which they are familiar. In the use of such powers, it may determine the manner of functioning of the courts and other judicial services, setting the days and hours of work in response to the needs of the service. All the agreed orders of character and general application issued by the Supreme Court must be published in the Official Journal of Chile.
• To inform the President of the Republic, when his opinion is requested, of any point concerning the administration of justice and on which there is no question that should be known;
• To report any amendments proposed to the constitutional organic law relating to the Organization and Attributions of the Tribunals, in accordance with the provisions of the Political Constitution;
• Know and resolve the granting or revocation of parole, in cases where qualified perpetual presiding has been imposed. The resolution, in this case, must be agreed upon by the majority of the members in exercise;
• Know all matters that special laws expressly entrust to you.

For their part, the chambers of the Supreme Court are responsible for knowing:

• Married resources in the fund;
• Of the cassation appeals in the manner filed against the judgements rendered by the Courts of Appeal or by an arbitral tribunal of second instance constituted by arbitrators of law in cases where the arbitrators have known business of the jurisdiction of the Courts;
• Of the nullity appeals filed against the final judgements handed down by the criminal courts, where appropriate in accordance with criminal procedure;
• Appeals filed against the judgements handed down by the Courts of Appeals in appeals for amparo and protection;
• Out of the review resources and of the resolutions they relapse on the claims of chapters;
• In the second instance, of the cases referred to in article 53, paragraphs 2 and 3, of the Professional Code of Tribunals;
• Of complaints, but the application of disciplinary measures is within the competence of the full court;
• Of the complaints appeals against second instance judgements handed down for lack or abuse, with the sole purpose of promptly remedying the evil that motivates it;
• Applications made, in accordance with the procedural law, to declare whether there are circumstances that enable the authority required to refuse to provide certain information or to oppose the entry and registration of religious sites, buildings where a public authority or military or police premises operate.
• Of the other judicial business that it is appropriate to know the Supreme Court and that they are not expressly handed over to the full.

Operation

Supreme Court Plenary Hall.

The Supreme Court works ordinarily divided into three chambers and, extraordinarily, into four, corresponding to the Court itself to determine one or another mode of operation. The integration of the room for the President of the Court is optional, and in the event that he chooses to do so, he can integrate any of them.

It is up to the Court itself, by means of an agreed order, to establish the form of distribution of its ministers among the various chambers, which must remain unchanged for a period of at least two years. Likewise, it corresponds to it to establish by means of an agreed order, every two years, the matters that each of the rooms in which the Court is divided, both in ordinary and extraordinary operation, will hear.

According to the Agreed Order of the Supreme Court of July 28, 2017, the distribution of cases among the Court's chambers, during ordinary and extraordinary operations, is as follows:

Ordinary operation

During ordinary operation, the three Specialized Chambers into which the Supreme Court is divided hear:

A. First Chamber or Civil Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge of civil, commercial, labour and forecasting matters.
2. Other matters involving civil, commercial, labour and forecasting proceedings relevant to the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.

B. Second Chamber or Criminal Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge of criminal, tax and civil matters related to a current case of the former criminal procedure system.
2. Of the appeals filed against the judgements handed down in amparo appeals, whatever the matter in which they are committed, except for those which fall in the constitutional action referred to in the single article of Act No. 18,971, on violation of article 19 No. 21 of the Constitution of the Republic.
3. Appeals and consultations of judgements or rulings issued by one of the Ministers of the Tribunal in the cases referred to in article 52 of the Professional Code of Tribunals.
4. Other matters involving criminal, infractional and tax proceedings involving the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.

C. Third Constitutional and Administrative Disputes Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge of administrative contentious matters.
2. The appeals and consultations of the judgements relapsed in the economic amparo appeals provided for by the single article of Act No. 18,971, on violation of article 19 No. 21 of the Constitution of the Republic.
3. Appeals from the judgements handed down by the President of the Supreme Court in the cases referred to in numbers 2nd and 3rd, concerning cases of prey, of article 53 of the Professional Code of Tribunals.
4. Appeals against appeals for first-instance protection appeals by the country ' s Courts of Appeal and
5. Other matters of constitutional and administrative contentious order that are relevant to the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.

Extraordinary Performance

During the extraordinary operation, the four Specialized Chambers into which the Supreme Court is divided hear:

A. First Chamber or Civil Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge of civil and commercial matters, including matters known by arbitrators, executive, bankruptcy, liquidation, renegotiation and reorganization, of extracontractual responsibility among individuals, with the exception of matters whose knowledge corresponds to the Third or Fourth Chamber.
2. Of the remedies in civil cases in the area of protection of the rights of consumers and other matters arising in civil and commercial proceedings that are relevant to the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.
3. Of the international appeals and requests of exequatur that affect the above-mentioned subjects.

B. Second Chamber or Criminal Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of knowledge of the Supreme Court in criminal matters, infractional known by the Local Police Courts, of industrial, tax and civil property related to a current case of the former criminal procedure system.
2. Of the appeals appeals filed against the judgements handed down in amparo, with the exception of those that relapse in the constitutional action referred to in the single article of Act No. 18,971, on violation of article 19, No. 21 of the Constitution of the Republic, and those that investigate in matters governed by labour law and social security and family law.
3. Appeals and consultations of judgements or rulings issued by one of the Ministers of the Tribunal in the cases referred to in article 52 of the Professional Code of Tribunals.
4. Other matters involving criminal, infractional and tax proceedings involving the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.
5. Of the international appeals and requests of exequatur that affect the above-mentioned subjects.

C. Third Constitutional and Administrative Disputes Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge in matters of administrative contentious order; civilians in which the State and its agencies concerned with the collection of municipal rents, the nullity of public law, the responsibility of the State or the exercise of public powers, with the exception of those handed over to the Second Chamber and the Fourth Chamber of a previsional or labour nature; of waters and expropriations;
2. The appeals and consultations of the judgements relapsed in the economic amparo appeals provided for by the single article of Act No. 18,971, on violation of article 19 No. 21 of the Constitution of the Republic.
3. Appeals from the judgements handed down by the President of the Supreme Court in the proceedings referred to in the numbers 2nd and 3rd, in the case of prey cases, of article 53 of the Professional Code of Tribunals.
4. Appeals from judgements relapsed in protection remedies first decided by the Court of Appeal of the country.
5. Other matters of constitutional and administrative contentious order that are relevant to the Supreme Court and which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.
6. Of the international appeals and requests of exequatur that affect the above-mentioned subjects.

D. Fourth Labour and Previsional Chamber

1. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of the Supreme Court ' s knowledge in the field of labour, projectional, labour and forecasting, family, mining and other matters relating thereto, as well as the civil causes of fishing and intellectual property.
2. The appeals appeals against the judgements handed down in amparo appeals in matters governed by labour law and social security and family law.
3. Of the ordinary and extraordinary resources of knowledge of the Supreme Court deducted in summary and special trials and in non-contentious civil matters.
4. Other matters pertaining to the Supreme Court, which are not expressly handed over to the Court of the Whole or to another Chamber.
5. Of the international appeals and requests of exequatur that affect the above-mentioned subjects.

In the event of a discrepancy between the Chambers regarding their competence to hear a specific matter, the President of the Supreme Court resolves without further recourse.

Headquarters

Frontis del Palacio de los Tribunals de Justicia de Santiago, 2010.

The Palace of the Courts of Justice of Santiago de Chile is the building that houses the Supreme Court of Justice, in addition to the Court of Appeals of Santiago and the Court-martial of the Army, Air Force and Carabineros. It is located in the Chilean capital, on Compañía de Jesús street, between Morandé and Bandera, in front of Montt Varas square.

The building was built in two stages, between 1905 and 1930, and declared a "National Historic Monument" by the Chilean Ministry of Education in 1976.

Disputes

Protection resource with international scope

On November 18, 2015, the Supreme Court issued a controversial ruling in which it is attributed having the power to issue orders to international organizations through a protection appeal that it accepted in favor of the Venezuelan Leopoldo López, which it provoked the rejection of the legal community for considering that the Court exceeded the limits of its authority, and the absolute repudiation of the IACHR, which stressed its nature as an autonomous international organization and not subject to the jurisdiction of national courts.

Competition dispute with the Comptroller's Office

On March 6, 2018, the Senate resolved a jurisdictional dispute between the Supreme Court and the Comptroller General of the Republic, filed at the latter's request, due to an action filed by a group of officials from the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics about its pension regime. For the Comptroller's Office, Jorge Bermúdez, spoke, while for the Court, its President, Sergio Muñoz, spoke. The Senate finally ruled in favor of the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic and its thesis that it has the exclusive role of interpreting the law, and the decision of the Supreme Court to have attributed competence was not valid.

Protection appeal against the Constitutional Court

On October 7, 2019, the Supreme Court, through a ruling handed down by the Third Chamber, claimed to have the power to review the sentences handed down by the Constitutional Court through the appeal for protection, a dispute that provoked a commotion between the different powers of the State and announcements of constitutional reform to settle the dispute between both superior courts.